UHMl 


• 
B 


t  . 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


PRESENTED  BY 

PROF.  CHARLES  A.  KOFOID  AND 

MRS.  PRUDENCE  W.  KOFOID 


MISS  JENNY.  MR.  CHUPES. 

THE  DRAMATIS  PERSONS. 


Mr.Chupes  and  Missjenny 


The    Life   Story 
of  Two   Robins 


By 

Effie    Bignell 


New  York 
The  Baker  and  Taylor  Company 

33-37  East  Seventeenth  Street 


Copyright,  1901, 

BY 
THE  BAKER  &  TAYLOR  COMPANY 


ROBERT  DRUMMOND,   PRINTER,  NEW  YORK. 


9T0  tlje  &uimb0n  Societies 

IN  RECOGNITION  OF 

THEIR  WORK   IN  THE  CAUSE  OF 

BIRD  PROTECTION 


\ 


ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

PORTIONS  of  the  following  account  of  my 
two  robins,  amounting,  perhaps,  to  one- 
quarter  of  the  text  as  here  given,  appeared 
originally  in  "  Our  Animal  Friends  ";  and  I 
take  this  occasion  to  thank  its  courteous 
editor  for  kind  permission  to  use  the  mat- 
ter in  this  enlarged  form. 

THE  AUTHOR. 
vii 


^5816 


CONTENTS 
i 

PAGE 

MR.  CHUPES  ENTERS  SUDDENLY  .      13 

II 
Miss  JENNY'S  FORLORN  ADVENT  75 

III 
THE  ROBINS  GO  A-TRAVELLING  in 

IV 
A  DIGRESSION  ON  SQUIRRELS  176 

V 

MR.  CHUPES'   MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS  204 

VI 
THE  SONG  DIES  AWAY  219 

VII 

POOR  Miss  JENNY'S  HEART  233 

ix 


LIST  OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

THE  DRAMATIS  PERSONS  Frontispiece 

THE  RESCUE  Page  15 

MR.   CHUPES  ENJOYS   BATHING  41 

Miss  JENNY  77 
Miss  JENNY  FOLLOWS  A  GOOD  EXAMPLE          85 

MR.   CHUPES  is  CONFIDENTIAL  163 

THE  GROVE  179 

ATTENTION,   MR.   CHUPES  !  209 
xi 


MR.  CHUPES  AND    MISS   JENNY 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

MY  robins  were  known  as  Mr.  Chupes 
and  Miss  Jenny,  and  their  settled  habita- 
tion was  in  a  certain  collegiate  town  of  New 
Jersey;  but  like  all  unhampered  individuals 
of  their  kind,  they  travelled  extensively  at 
fashionable  seasons.  At  home  and  during 
their  trips  they  collected  large  circles  of 
friends  from  all  kinds  and  conditions  of 
men.  Yet  their  popularity  was  not  con- 
fined to  their  route  of  travel,  for  the  little 
creatures  are  known  by  reputation  in  lands 
far  over  the  sea;  and,  to  this  day,  certain 
13 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

wise  men  of  the  Orient  are  puzzling  their 
brains  over  the  problem  of  two  such  small 
heads  having  been  able  to  carry  all  they 
knew. 

Being  suc'h  a  quiet,  unobtrusive  little 
couple,  their  presence  on  boats  and  trains 
was  generally  unsuspected,  but  whenever 
public  or  private  attention  was  attracted  to 
them,  they  awakened  an  interest  equal  to 
that  bestowed  on  royalty  abroad  or  its  cor- 
responding great  ones  at  home. 

But,  to  begin  at  the  very  beginning,  my 
acquaintance  with  the  hero  of  this  strictly 
authentic  sketch  dates  from  a  certain  balmy 
June  afternoon  when  a  friend  and  I  were 
strolling  through  a  beautiful  shady  grove  in 
our  neighborhood. 

We  had  been  revelling  in  the  delightful 

sounds  around  us, — gently  rustling  leaves, 

songs  of  birds,  the  drowsy  hum  of  insects 

and  various  other  soothing  and  harmonious 

14 


Q 


15 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

voices  of  the  woods, — when,  suddenly, 
shrill  cries  of  distress  and  loud  calls  for  help 
broke  upon  the  harmony  of  the  place.  Fol- 
lowing the  sound-trail,  we  came  to  the  poor 
victim,  the  unwilling  cause  of  all  the  dis- 
turbance. 

He  had  fallen  from  the  top  of  a  high  tree, 
and  was  very  much  frightened  and  possibly 
hurt.  His  anxious  parents  and  sympathetic 
neighbors  from  far  and  near  had  assembled 
at  the  scene  of  the  accident,  and  an  almost 
deafening  consultation  was  going  on. 
Every  one  was  putting  in  a  suggestion  or 
a  warning,  but  above  all  these  sounds  rose 
the  wails  of  the  unfortunate  subject  of  the 
accident. 

My  friend  and  I  approached  the  sufferer, 
but,  whatever  torture  he  might  be  endur- 
ing, it  was  evident  that  he  had  no  wish  to 
be  rescued  by  us.  After  a  short  consulta- 
tion we  decided  to  ignore  his  objections,  so 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

we  picked  him  up;  and,  although  we  were 
severely  denounced  by  the  whole  party, 
himself  included,  we  bore  him  away  from 
his  friends,  his  relatives  and  his  family  tree, 
and  brought  him  to  our  home. 

Such  a  dear,  downy,  yellow-beaked,  big- 
headed  mite  as  this  baby  robin  was!  The 
pathetic  little  "  chupe,  chupe  "  that  he  ut- 
tered from  time  to  time  furnished  the  sug- 
gestion for  the  name  of  Mr.  Chupes  which 
he  always  thereafter  bore,  while  a  mark  of 
identification  had  been  provided  for  him 
through  his  hasty  and  unpremeditated  de- 
scent from  the  tree;  for,  as  he  fell,  he  struck 
the  ground  with  such  force  as  to  break  the 
hind  toe  of  his  right  claw;  and  the  injured 
member,  in  healing,  grew  forward  instead 
of  back.  But  no  doubt  my  clumsy  surgery 
intensified  the  defect,  for,  forgetting  how 
plastic  the  baby  bones  were,  I  bunched  all 
the  little  toes  of  the  right  claw  together 
18 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

in  my  witchhazel-soaked  bandages,  and  I 
only  discovered  my  mistake  when  the  in- 
jured toe  was  firmly  set  in  its  unnatural  po- 
sition. I  have  no  doubt  that  to  the  influ- 
ence of  this  same  unskilful  treatment  may 
be  ascribed  the  fact  that,  in  Mr.  Chupes' 
case,  the  sitting-on-the-elbows  period  was 
extended  several  days  beyond  orthodox 
limits. 

The  reminder  of  his  accident  (which,  by 
the  way,  is  plainly  discernible  in  several  of 
his  photographs)  he  carried  to  the  end  of 
his  days.  It  seemed  to  inconvenience  him 
slightly  when  he  attempted  to  grasp  a  small 
surface;  but,  as  a  rule,  it  did  not  interfere 
with  his  comfort. 

When  the  little  bird  was  once  fairly  in- 
stalled in  his  new  quarters,  he  manifested 
no  further  desire  to  rejoin  his  parents.  At 
about  four  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the 
day  after  'his  rescue,  he  gave  unmistakable 
19 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

notes  of  response  to  some  robins  that  flew, 
chattering,  past  my  window;  but  it  was  not 
the  piteous  appeal  of  "  Take  me  with  you!  " 
Rather  the  reassuring,  "  I  have  fallen 
among  extremely  decent  humans.  Don't 
distress  yourselves  on  my  account.7' 

Shortly  after  we  rescued  him  I  went  back 
to  see  if  his  parents  were  grieving.  I  found 
them  very  philosophically  taking  up  the 
thread  of  their  daily  life,  evidently  deter- 
mined not  to  let  the  loss  of  a  nestling  inter- 
fere with  their  housekeeping.  The  anxiety 
of  the  neighbors  had  also  calmed  down,  and 
peace  and  order  reigned  where  confusion 
and  dismay  had  so  recently  held  sway. 

Now  before  going  any  further  in  my  re- 
cital I  want  to  confess  to  you  that  when  I 
picked  up  that  squawking  little  bundle  of 
feathers,  with  body  and  head  nearly  equal 
in  their  dimensions,  legs  no  support  what- 
ever and  wings  represented  by  two  helpless 

20 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

little  quill-covered  bones  folded  against  its 
sides,  I  had  no  conception  of  the  magnitude 
of  the  task  I  was  imposing  on  myself  in  un- 
dertaking its  rescue.  I  should  probably 
have  hesitated  about  accepting  the  charge, 
or  perhaps  have  declined  it  altogether,  had 
I  realized  all  the  care,  the  anxiety  and  the 
danger  to  my  protege  involved  in  the  re- 
sponsibility. 

W'hen  I  took  Chupes  to  my  home  and 
bestowed  upon  him  the  care  and  attention 
one  would  give  a  child,  I  deprived  him  in  a 
great  measure  of  his  natural  sense  of  self- 
protection.  He  simply  cast  the  responsi- 
bility of  his  existence  on  me,  as  was  proved 
by  the  fact  that  in  danger  he  usually  came 
flying  to  me  with  a  cry  that  certainly  was  a 
call  for  help.  I  never  disappointed  him,  but 
it  was  at  a  cost  that  few  among  you  could 
realize,  and  none  but  an  ardent  bird-lover 
would  be  willing  to  meet.  It  is  in  case  the 

21 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

story  of  my  interesting  little  pets  should  en- 
gage your  attention  to  the  extent  of  filling 
you  with  the  desire  to  own  a  Chupes  or  a 
Jenny,  that  I  emphasize  these  very  im- 
portant points. 

The  possession  of  pets  under  such  cir- 
cumstances as  I  describe  means  "  eternal 
vigilance  "  as  far  as  their  natural  enemies 
are  concerned,  and  a  constant  watchfulness 
against  the  dangers  induced  by  unnatural 
conditions.  Take,  for  instance,  the  fact 
that  the  tops  of  open  doors  were  favorite 
perching  places  of  Chupes'  and  Jenny's. 
Think  What  might  have  resulted  from  a  mo- 
ment's carelessness  in  the  matter  of  one 
left  to  swing!  This  is  a  single  instance, 
chosen,  at  random,  from  hundreds,  of  the 
risks  to  Which  these  helpless  little  creatures 
were  subjected. 

Now  carry  out  the  line  of  thought  with 
regard  to  food  preparation  and  administra- 
22 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

tion,  to  cleanliness,  to  cheeriness  (for,  hav- 
ing made  them  dependent  on  me  for  every- 
thing, their  happiness  became  my  duty), 
and  as  many  other  demands  as  you  can 
fancy,  and  you  will  have  some  idea,  but  not 
a  perfect  one,  of  what  my  possession  of  the 
robins  involved. 

"  But,"  you  suggest,  "  what  if  in  our 
rambles  we  are  confronted  by  the  problem 
of  an  injured  or  a  helpless  bird?  Are  we  to 
leave  the  little  creature  to  die?  " 

If  you  choose  to  pick  the  waif  up  with  the 
thought  of  giving  it  a  chance  of  recovery 
and  its  freedom  at  the  earliest  possible  date, 
well  and  good;  but  remember  that  it  would 
be  far  more  merciful  to  leave  the  little  crea- 
ture to  starve  or  to  fall  into  the  jaws  of  the 
cat  than  to  teach  it  to  look  for  and  be  de- 
pendent on  your  care,  only  to  perish  miser- 
ably through  your  neglect. 

There  is  really  no  excuse  for  taking  a 
23 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS   JENNY 

bird  from  its  nest,  although  nestlings  may 
learn  to  accommodate  themselves  to  un- 
natural conditions,  and  even  to  be  happy 
with  human  beings  under  the  most  favor- 
able circumstances. 

But  a  bird  that  has  once  tasted  the 
sweets  of  liberty — unless  some  accident  has 
maimed  him  and  made  him  grateful  for  hu- 
man aid — can  never  know  anything  but 
heartache  in  captivity. 

I  don't  know  that  I  ever  realized  this 
more  fully  than  in  the  case  of  a  beautiful 
cardinal-bird  owned  by  a  friend  of  mine. 

It  was  evening  when  the  cage  was 
brought  to  her  home,  and  its  occupant  was 
either  too  dazed  or  too  exhausted  to  evince 
restlessness;  indeed  he  had  almost  the  ap- 
pearance of  having  been  drugged. 

But  the   following  morning  when  my 
friend  went  to  look  at  her  gift  she  found  the 
unfortunate  creature  beating  wildly  against 
24 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

the  restraining  bars,  while  a  pool  of  blood 
in  the  bottom  of  his  cage  testified  to  the 
length  of  time  he  had  been  making  this 
desperate  resistance. 

I  need  hardly  tell  you  that  the  sight  de- 
cided her  to  liberate  the  wretched  prisoner; 
but  a  terrible  storm  was  raging.  Could  she 
make  up  her  mind  to  turn  him  adrift  in  such 
a  tempest? 

She  hesitated,  but  her  indecision  lasted 
only  a  moment.  No  storm  could  be  fiercer 
than  the  one  raging  in  his  captive  breast;  no 
struggle  more  desperate  than  this  wild  bat- 
tle for  liberty.  Better  any  fate  than  that  of 
a  prisoner! 

She  carried  him  to  the  balcony  and 
opened  the  door  of  his  cage.  The  bleeding 
creature  looked  up  into  the  wild  sky.  He 
halted  a  moment,  influenced  perhaps  by  in- 
ability to  grasp  the  thought  that  his  bond- 
age was  over;  then  a  gleam  of  hope  came 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

into  the  beautiful  red  eyes;  he  spread  his 
battered  wings  and,  with  a  cry  of  joy,  he 
went  out  into  the  tempest. 

No  doubt  the  work  of  healing  began  with 
the  first  beating  of  the  storm  against  his 
mangled  body,  and  no  doubt,  with  each 
sweep  of  his  bleeding  wings,  his  exulting 
heart  sang,  tree,  free! 

I  have  frequently  been  asked  if,  in  all  the 
five  years  during  which  I  had  my  birds,  I 
never  found  the  charge  irksome;  if  I  never 
regretted  having  taken  such  a  burden  upon 
myself. 

To  this  I  answer  unhesitatingly,  never! 
Their  loss  was  a  heartfelt  grief  to  me,  and  I 
daily  miss  their  sweet  companionship.  The 
possession  of  anything  truly  worth  while 
is  attended  by  many  trials  and  difficulties, 
and  in  serving  even  our  dearest  ones  we 
may  experience  anxiety  and  fatigue. 

But  putting  the  very  highest  estimate  on 
26 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

all  I  ever  did  for  my  robins,  they  repaid  me 
more  than  a  hundredfold.  They  were  my 
most  devoted  friends — Chupes  might  even 
have  been  styled  my  worshipper — and  af- 
fection is  such  a  precious  thing!  Their  ac- 
tions always  had  the  charm  of  originality 
and  purpose,  and  watching  them  was  one  of 
the  pleasantest  and  most  profitable  of  rec- 
reations. It  was  almost  impossible  not  to 
be  beguiled  into  interest  and  amusement 
while  following  their  funny  performances. 

Then  what  a  gain  in  my  health  and  edu- 
cation resulted  from  the  hours  and  hours 
that  I  spent  in  the  woods  for  their  happiness 
and  benefit!  Let  me  give  an  instance  or 
two  of  how  my  lessons  were  taught  me. 

It  was  while  I  was  quietly  watching  for 
bird  enemies  that  I  first  saw  a  bit  of  bark 
become  an  animated  creature  and  go 
swiftly  and  stealthily  around  a  tree,  while 
keeping  up  a  squeaky  little  monologue. 
27 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

Suddenly  it  halted,  and,  spreading  out  a 
camp-chair  sort  of  an  arrangement,  it  sat 
down;  and  then  I  knew  that  my  piece  of 
bark  was  the  brown  creeper,  and  the  camp- 
chair  its  tail! 

It  was  during  a  study  of  the  ground  in 
the  interests  of  my  birds  that  I  discovered 
one  of  the  sweetest  secrets  of  the  sod.  My 
attention  was  first  attracted  by  a  little 
roughness  in  the  sward — loosely  strewn 
bits  of  grass  with  occasional  suggestive 
tufts  of  short  grayish-brown  hair — and, 
lifting  the  covering,  I  found  four  tiny, 
smooth,  furry  balls:  baby  rabbits,  hardly 
half  the  size  of  my  hand,  with  soft  brown 
eyes,  quivering  noses  of  conch-s'hell  hue, 
prophecies  of  long  ears,  and  suggestions  of 
stumpy  tails.  Papa  was  probably  away  on 
an  expedition  to  a  neighboring  burrow, — 
perhaps  canvassing  with  his  chums  the 
most  expeditious  and  unobtrusive  methods 
28 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

of  extracting  certain  roots  other  than 
Greek  or  Latin, — while  mamma  was  no 
doubt  at  a  greengrocer's,  making  selec- 
tions for  lunch. 

Allowing  myself  time  for  only  a  hurried 
survey  of  the  babies,  I  tenderly  tucked 
them  up  again  in  the  soft,  warm  coverlet 
(lined  with  fur  from  the  parents'  old  coats, 
by  the  way),  and  I  left  the  nursery  before 
the  heads  of  the  house  had  time  to  witness 
my  intrusion. 

They  all  learned  to  know  me  after  a 
while;  and  as  their  fear  decreased,  they 
sought  my  neighborhood  instead  of  avoid- 
ing it. 

I  never  became  thoroughly  acquainted 
with  that  clever  entomologist,  the  toad,  un- 
til Chupes  and  Jenny  introduced  me  to  him. 
We  were  quietly  stationed  in  his  neighbor- 
hood one  afternoon,  not  even  suspecting 
his  presence,  when,  all  at  once,  a  gentle 
29 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

rustle  among  the  leaves  called  our  attention 
to  him.  We  had  entered  his  dressing- 
room  evidently,  for  he  soon  proceeded  to 
make  his  toilet.  First  he  massaged  himself 
thoroughly;  then  he  began  to  tug  and  pull 
at  his  outer  skin,  which  he  finally  drew  over 
his  head  after  the  manner  of  an  athlete  tak- 
ing off  his  sweater,  and  when  he  had  rolled 
it  up  into  a  ball  he  calmly  swallowed  it! 

I  have  since  learned  that  this  pill  is  the 
only  medicine  a  toad  ever  takes.  It  is  a  lit- 
tle difficult  to  understand  how  his  cast-off 
garments  benefit  him  internally,  but  clever 
men,  far  too  learned  to  err  in  such  matters, 
assure  us  that  they  do;  so  we  dare  not  dis- 
credit the  statement.  You  may  be  inter- 
ested in  knowing  that  the  new  coat  re- 
sembled the  old  in  every  respect,  only  that 
it  was  a  trifle  less  dingy. 

We  three  and  the  toad  became  excellent 
friends  as  the  days  went  on.  He  used  to 
30 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

station  himself  regularly  under  the  water- 
ing-pot when  the  flower-bed  in  which  he 
lived,  and  to  which  he  was  of  such  benefit  in 
destroying  noxious  insects,  received  its 
shower-bath.  I  suppose  he  found  it  re- 
freshing to  his  dry  back. 

On  two  or  three  occasions  Chupes 
looked  as  if  he  had  surgical  intentions  on 
the  entomologist's  warts,  but  the  opportu- 
nity for  performing  an  operation  never 
presented  itself,  as  the  coveted  subject  usu- 
ally hopped  off  when  the  would-be  surgeon 
came  within  four  or  five  inches  of  him. 

The  manner  in  which  this  goggle-eyed 
creature  used  to  catch  his  prey  was  a  never- 
failing  source  of  wonder  to  me.  He  would 
sit  motionless  for  half  an  hour  at  a  time,  his 
bulgy,  palpitating  sides  alone  testifying  to 
the  fact  that  he  was  not  merely  a  paper- 
weight or  a  bronze  ornament.  Suddenly 
you  might  fancy  that  you  saw  a  convulsive 
31 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

movement  of  the  broad  mouth,  and  at  the 
same  time  you  perhaps  missed  a  fly  or  some 
other  insect  that  had  been  venturing  too 
near  Mr.  Wartyback;  but  of  the  transaction 
proper  you  had  not  an  inkling.  I  used 
sometimes  to  imagine  that  the  goggle  eye 
nearest  me  winked,  and  that  the  wide 
mouth  had  the  semblance  of  a  grin  after  a 
successful  haul,  but  I  must  have  been  mis- 
taken; for  surely  no  creature  of  such  sang 
froid  as  a  toad  could  have  indulged  in  so 
frivolous  an  action. 

Through  my  intimacy  with  this  specimen 
I  was  enabled  to  alleviate  the  sufferings  of 
several  relatives  of  his — victims  of  lawn- 
mower  accidents.  But  as  a  rule,  the  kindest 
service  one  can  render  in  such  cases  is  to 
put  the  maimed  creature  out  of  the  way  as 
quickly  as  possible. 

I  will  ask  you  to  note  that  in  each  of  the 
instances  of  discovery  I  have  mentioned,  we 
32 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

were  quiet  When  the  revelation  came.  If 
you  wish  to  see  a  bird  go  to  its  nest  with- 
out misleading  artifices,  you  must  be  will- 
ing to  be  quiet.  If  you  would  follow  the 
little  creature  as  it  rears  its  young  and 
launches  them  in  the  world,  you  must  be 
quiet.  Indeed,  without  quiet  you  will 
never  view  any  but  a  disguised  form  of  bird 
or  beast  or  insect  life. 

The  secret  of  forest  calm  was  one  of  the 
earliest  out-door  mysteries  into  which 
Chupes  and  Jenny  initiated  me.  One  need 
not  be  a  stock  or  a  stone;  one  need  not  as- 
sume an  attitude  of  painful,  tiresome  rigid- 
ity; but  one  must  learn  that  bustling,  noisy 
ways  are  all  out  of  place  in  Nature's  school. 
She  cannot  reveal  herself  to  restless  listen- 
ers. One  must  be  willing  to  wait  for  her 
interpretations;  to  wait  to  catch  the  sound 
of  the  myriad  voices,  none  of  which  is  with- 
out signification;  but  such  waiting  is  never 
33 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

lost  time.  Body  and  soul  are  both  gainers 
by  this  beautiful,  restful  stillness,  and  forest 
calm,  once  truly  gained,  becomes  a  life 
habit. 

I  never  learned  so  much  of  the  beauty, 
the  majesty  and  the  significance  of  a  storm, 
as  when  watching  it  from  its  earliest  begin- 
nings with  a  view  to  giving  my  robins  as 
much  of  an  outing  as  possible,  while  allow- 
ing myself  ample  time  to  place  them  under 
shelter  before  it  should  really  break  forth. 

How  impressively  the  minor-voiced  trees 
spoke  as  they  wildly  and  warningly  waved 
their  branches  against  the  ever-darkening 
sky.  It  was  as  if  they  said:  "  Go  to  your 
shelter,  O  human  child.  Nature  has  a  great 
probing,  testing  work  on  hand  to-day.  She 
is  sending  out  her  emissaries  to  learn  which 
of  us  have  lived  out  the  measure  of  our 
days:  which  will  fall  under  the  violence  of 
the  storm,  or  which  will  gain  in  strength 
34 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

through  resistance.  She  will  test  even  the 
homes  of  the  little  creatures  that  live 
among  our  branches.  Careless  workman- 
ship will  not  survive.  The  searching  out 
will  cost  some  little  beings  their  lives.  But 
this  is  not  so  cruel  as  it  would  appear.  The 
weak  and  the  ailing  alone  succumb.  Na- 
ture allows  these  beings,  to  whom  pro- 
longed inactivity  would  be  torture,  no  pos- 
sibility of  dragging  out  a  lengthy,  wretched 
existence.  There  is  no  lasting  infirmity,  no 
forlorn  old  age  possible  in  this  realm.  It 
would  have  no  meaning,  no  benefit,  no 
place  here. 

"But  do  not  needlessly  subject  yourself  to 
the  violence  of  any  storm,  O  human  child. 
Go  to  your  shelter.  Well  for  you  if  it  has 
been  constructed  on  right  principles.  Woe 
to  you  if  careless  workmanship  has  made  it 
unsafe;  for  even  one  insufficient  layer  of 
mortar,  one  loosely  placed  brick,  may  cause 
35 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

a  great  calamity.  Heed  the  lesson  well,  and 
though  you  may  suffer  through  the  wrong- 
doing of  others,  never  let  others  suffer 
through  your  carelessness.  Be  faithful  in 
least  as  well  as  in  greatest  things.  Remem- 
ber that  there  are  no  insignificant  results  of 
a  careless  act  or  a  neglected  duty." 


Do  you  understand  something  of  my  in- 
debtedness to  my  little  charges,  and  some- 
thing of  the  responsibility  connected  with 
their  bringing-up?  Then  let  us  turn  once 
more  to  the  baby  robin  in  order  to  learn 
how  he  fared  in  the  home  of  his  adoption. 

His  most  conspicuous  feature  was  his 
beak.  When  closed  it  presented  the  ap- 
pearance of  having  been  ironed,  with  edges 
and  corners  badly  puckered  by  the  laun- 
dress. But  during  the  earliest  stages  of  his 
infancy  I  was  not  often  permitted  a  lengthy 
contemplation  of  this  feature  in  repose. 
36 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

My  approach  was  a  signal  for  the  head  to 
fly  back  and  the  beak  to  open  to  such  an  ex- 
tent that  it  seemed  fairly  in  danger  of  swal- 
lowing its  owner.  If  I  was  not  at  my  at- 
tendant's post,  I  was  certain  to  be  sum- 
moned every  ten  or  fifteen  minutes  during 
all  the  waking  hours  of  the  little  creature  I 
was  mothering.  While  I  fed  him^  the  beak 
would  remain  open,  the  regulation  squawk- 
ing and  chattering  of  approval  going  on, 
until  no  more  food  could  be  accommo- 
dated, when  the  satisfied  little  chap  would 
drop  off  into  a  comfortable  snooze. 

As  he  grew  older  the  intervals  between 
meals  were  longer  and  the  naps  fewer. 
Had  he  remained  in  his  parents'  house,  they 
would  probably  have  begun  their  danger 
object-lessons  at  this  more  wakeful  period 
of  his  existence. 

I  had  no  particular  theory  with  regard  to 
Mr.  Chupes'  diet  when  I  began  to  feed  him1. 
37 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

Bread,  moistened  with  water,  was  the  most 
available  food,  and  on  this  he  subsisted  un- 
til one  day  when  I  found  it  more  convenient 
to  give  him  biscuit.  Naturally,  for  this  pur- 
pose, I  selected  the  simplest  of  wafers. 
After  having  once  tested  the  new  food,  he 
scornfully  rejected  bread,  yet  we  had  never 
fancied  that  any  taste  or  discrimination 
could  be  connected  with  the  gobbling  per- 
formance we  had  dignified  by  the  name  of 
eating. 

The  wide-open  beak  soon  learned  to 
close  on  a  spoon,  and  both  drink  and  food 
disappeared  down  the  yellow  lane,  accom- 
panied by  the  chattering  without  which 
young  birds  seem  unable  to  relish  their 
meals. 

Since  the  days  of  Chupes'  babyhood  I 
have  watched,  with  interest,  various  meth- 
ods pursued  by  friends  of  mine  in  their  at- 
tempts to  raise  young  robins.  It  was,  at 
38 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

first,  a  matter  of  surprise  to  me  that  in 
nearly  every  case  where  the  diet  of  earth- 
worms was  adopted,  the  little  creatures  de- 
veloped asthma  and  died  before  reaching 
maturity.  The  more  I  consider  the  matter, 
the  more  natural  it  seems  to  me  that  out- 
door air  is  the  necessary  digestive  accom- 
paniment of  such  a  hearty  diet  as  worms; 
and  again,  that  the  slapping  and  banging 
and  generally  masticating  preparation 
which  the  parent  bird  gives  the  worm 
makes  it  easy  for  the  little  stomach  to  as- 
similate it. 

During  the  cradle  period,  Chupes  de- 
lighted in  being  held  in  the  hollow  of  one's 
hand,  but  as  such  treats  could  only  be  oc- 
casional, we  made  a  nice  nest  for  him  of 
soft  old  handkerchiefs,  and  a  more  thor- 
oughly contented  or  satisfied  little  bird  one 
never  saw.  His  sky  was  obscured  only  dur- 
ing the  moments  of  his  daily  bath,  which  he 
39 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

was  too  small  to  take  by  himself,  and  to 
which,  at  th'is  early  period  of  his  career,  he 
objected  strongly.  But  when  he  had  once 
grasped  the  benefits  and  learned  to  appre- 
ciate the  delights  of  bathing,  how  to  re- 
strain him  became  the  problem. 

No  matter  for  whom  the  basin  of  water 
had  been  prepared,  or  how  many  dips  the 
little  chap  had  already  taken  during  the 
day,  at  the  sight  of  every  available  dish  of 
water  he  would  make  a  rush  for  "  first  in- 
nings." In  his  eagerness  for  a  plunge  he 
sometimes  tolerated  even  soap-suds. 

I  well  remember  my  earliest  struggles  to 
keep  him  from  washing  his  face  in  my 
pitcher  whenever  the  water  stood  at  an 
available  level.  He  even  attempted  a  foot- 
bath at  unusually  high  tides,  but  an  alarm- 
ing sense  of  insecurity,  an  inability  to  strike 
bottom,  soon  caused  him  to  abandon  this 
project. 

40 


MR.  CHUPES  ENJOYS  BATHING. 
41 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

To  discourage  the  face-washing  propen- 
sity, I  tried  the  plan  of  covering  the  top  of 
my  pitcher  with  a  heavy  wash-cloth  about 
a  foot  square;  but  I  had  not  taken  into  con- 
sideration the  ingenuity  of  the  wonderful 
little  brain  when  I  counted  on  such  an  easy 
victory. 

Stationing  himself,  as  usual,  on  the  edge 
of  the  pitcher,  Chupes  began  operations  by 
tugging  at  the  opposite  side.  Instead, 
however,  of  attempting  to  work  away  from 
his  post,  he  drew  the  wash-cloth  towards 
himself  so  that  one  corner  of  it  soon  fell 
into  the  water. 

The  tug  of  war  was  virtually  over  at  this 
stage  of  the  proceedings,  for,  having  ob- 
tained a  porcelain  foothold  for  himself,  he 
could  easily  pass  over  to  it,  and,  from  this 
vantage-point,  drag  the  entire  wash-cloth 
into  the  pitcher. 

It  would  seem  as  if  this  clever  manoeuvre 
43 


MR.  CHUPES  AND  MISS  JENNY 

ought  to  have  earned  for  him  the  right  to 
wash  his  face;  yet  I  always  made  it  a  mat- 
ter of  principle  to  discourage  the  perform- 
ance. But  my  tactics  were  a  mere  formal- 
ity, for  the  persistent  little  worker  never 
failed  to  dislodge  the  obstacle,  even  when 
it  was  wet  and  consequently  really  heavy; 
and  it  was  only  after  I  had  discovered  what 
terrors  a  piece  of  bark  had  for  the  birds,  as 
I  explain  later  on,  that  I  secured  immunity 
from  this  amusing  persecution. 

The  days  of  Chupes'  infancy  passed  hap- 
pily on,  bringing  great  changes  in  his  ap- 
pearance and  abilities.  After  a  time  his 
poor  claw  healed,  and  he  was  able  to  play 
about  my  room  and  even  to  roam  around 
out-of-doors  a  little.  Naturally,  on  such 
occasions,  he  was  always  accompanied  by 
one  of  his  faithful  friends. 

Of  course  the  baby  down  dropped  off 
after  a  time,  and  good-sized  feathers,  as 
44 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

well  as  a  very  respectable  little  tail,  put  in, 
or  put  out,  an  appearance.  His  breast  was 
now  all  speckled,  and  I  suppose  his  general 
costume  corresponded  to  that  of  a  little  lad 
who  has  been  promoted  to  knickerbockers. 

His  wings  by  this  time  had  reached  such 
proportions  that  he  could  fly  to  the  top  of 
a  small  tree.  I  would  gladly  have  given 
him  his  liberty  if  he  would  have  accepted  it, 
but  he  always  seemed  disinclined  to  remain 
away  from  me,  and  would  come  hurrying 
back  after  a  short  investigation  of  the  tree 
or  any  other  object  to  which  he  had  flown. 

One  afternoon,  when  he  seemed  particu- 
larly anxious  to  go  on  a  voyage  of  discov- 
ery, he  sighted  in  a  neighbor's  yard  some- 
thing which  appeared  to  possess  unusual  in- 
terest. He  flew  away  and,  to  my  dismay, 
alighted  beside  a  cat! 

Whether  the  remarkable  sight  of  a  bird 
voluntarily  putting  himself  in  the  way  of 
45 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

furnishing  her  breakfast  took  away  pussy's 
breath,  or  whether  my  violent  gesticula- 
tions and  "  shoos  "  paralyzed  her,  I  cannot 
say,  but,  at  any  rate,  there  she  sat  regard- 
ing him,  and  there  he  stood  admiring  her, 
until  I  went  up  to  him  and  rescued  him. 

The  cat  question  was  one  that  I  was  com- 
pelled to  confront,  or  at  least  to  consider, 
every  day  of  our  outings.  I  always  went  on 
the  supposition  that  there  might  be  hungry 
felines  lying  in  wait  for  my  little  charges; 
and  only  when  they  were  either  safe  in  a 
tree  or  fairly  under  my  hand,  did  I  feel  se- 
cure from  cat  onslaughts. 

Of  one  thing  I  became  convinced  as  I 
watched  these  gaunt  quadrupeds;  their 
skins  'hanging  loosely,  their  sides  suggest- 
ing the  possibility  of  clapping  together 
from  sheer  emptiness,  as  they  prowled 
around  with  quivering  jaws  and  suppressed 
staccato  meows  in  search  of  such  creatures 
46 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

as  those  I  was  guarding:    there  are  alto- 
gether too  many  cats  in  the  world! 

Understand  that  I  bear  them  no  grudge 
whatever.  Pussy,  in  a  good  home,  where 
she  does  not  endanger  the  life  of  any 
feathered  inmates  of  the  household,  and 
where  she  is  well  cared  for  and  sufficiently 
fed,  is  a  very  desirable  member  of  society; 
and  the  question  would  never  have  to  be 
viewed  from  any  other  standpoint  than  this, 
if  superfluous  cat  babies  received  a  birthday 
gift  of  a  merciful  dose  of  chloroform  or  a 
kind  bath.  The  mother  grieves  when  they 
are  taken  from  her,  but  she  soon  consoles 
herself  with  the  one  kitten  left  her.  But 
even  were  she  deprived  of  them  all,  her  dis- 
tress could  not  equal  the  long-drawn-out 
and  multiplied  misery  of  the  wretched,  half- 
starved  tramp  cats  who  are  allowed  to  grow 
up  because  no  one  had  the  kindness  of  heart 
to  put  them  out  of  the  way  before  they  re- 
47 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

alized  that  they  were  alive.  Think  of  this 
when  the  settling  of  the  question  depends 
on  you  or  your  influence. 

After  Chupes'  encounter  with  the  cat,  I 
felt  that  in  justice  to  this  very  trusting  lit- 
tle bird  it  would  be  necessary  to  limit  his 
flight,  so  I  reluctantly  clipped  the  outer 
feathers  of  one  of  his  wings.  This  an- 
swered the  purpose  better  than  cutting 
both,  and  was  far  less  disfiguring. 

Not  at  all  inconvenienced  or  discouraged 
by  this  restriction,  he  went  on  his  happy 
way,  only  complaining  when  deprived  of 
the  society  of  human  beings,  following  us 
about  whenever  permitted,  and  always 
deeply  interested  in  whatever  we  had  on 
hand. 

He  had  not  the  freedom  of  the  house, 

but  one  large  room  was  his  and — mine! 

This  partnership  arrangement  involved  the 

greatest  simplicity  of  furnishing,  and  at- 

48 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

tractive  perching  places  were  imperative; 
a  high  pole  with  horizontal  bars  at  branch- 
like  distances  being  the  favorite  of  these. 

Whenever  I  left  the  room  without  the 
birds,  I  dropped  and  fastened  to  the  floor 
the  mosquito-netting  portieres  which  always 
hung  at  my  doors  as  precautionary  meas- 
ures; and  for  longer  absences  I  had  also 
provided  screens  for  open  windows.  Chupes 
and  Jenny  were  at  liberty  to  fly  out  when  I 
could  accompany  them,  but  there  was  dan- 
ger in  any  expedition  not  under  my  direct 
supervision.  Boys  with  kidnapping  de- 
signs, cats,  dogs,  hawks,  and  I  can't  tell 
you  how  many  other  enemies,  awaited 
them.  And  a  propos  of  dogs,  why  would  it 
not  be  advisable  to  employ  for  decreasing 
their  number  and  preventing  much  of  their 
misery  the  same  merciful  methods  that  I 
have  suggested  for  lessening  the  cat  popu- 
lation? Although  they  are  not  such  fierce 
49 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

bird-enemies  as  cats,  nevertheless  I  was  ever 
on  the  alert  in  their  presence.  Even  in  the 
case  of  fine  hunting-dogs  I  kept  faithful 
guard,  although  their  owners  assured  me 
that  a  thoroughbred  would  scorn  to  avail 
himself  of  any  opportunities  other  than 
those  afforded  by  regular  hunts.  I  always 
feared  that  the  unusually  tempting  occa- 
sion might  disclose  a  hitherto  unsuspected 
bar  sinister  on  the  aristocratic  canine 
shield. 

I  provided  a  cage  for  Chupes  as  soon  as 
he  learned  to  perch,  and  here  he  was  incar- 
cerated at  night  and,  whenever  liberty 
meant  danger,  during  the  day.  He  was  so 
trusting  that  he  would  plant  himself  di- 
rectly in  our  path;  and  even  when  the  dan- 
ger of  being  crushed  seemed  imminent,  he 
would  not  swerve. 

A  stay  in  the  cage  had  no  terrors  for  him, 
however.  He  knew  that  it  did  not  mean 
5° 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

permanent  imprisonment;  and  from  behind 
the  bars  he  contentedly  kept  up  his  con- 
versations with  me  and  his  interest  in  my 
movements. 

The  summer  of  Chupes'  rescue  we  de- 
cided to  remain  at  home, — not  that  there 
was  any  connection  between  the  bird  and 
the  decision, — and  every  wind-and-weather- 
favored  day  we  spent  in  the  grove.  These 
visits  seemed  to  afford  my  protege  the  great- 
est pleasure,  yet,  in  revisiting  these  scenes 
of  his  babyhood,  I  do  not  suppose  that 
there  was  ever  the  slightest  stirring  of  fond 
recollection. 

He  used  to  make  the  journey  from  our 
house  in  the  safe  shelter  of  his  cage,  but 
once  arrived  at  his  destination  he  was  set 
free.  Strange  to  say,  the  chief  attraction 
on  these  occasions  was  not  the  society  of 
birds  (in  his  own  kind  he  had  only  a  slight 
interest),  nor  even  an  occasional  flight  to  a 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

tree,  but  the  investigation  of  the  earth  with 
its  pebbly  treasures,  and  now  and  then  the 
capture  of  a  worm,  for  which,  at  this  time, 
he  seemed  to  have  little  use  beyond  the 
pleasure  of  slaughtering  it. 

Many  a  bird  paid  Chupes  a  wondering 
visit  during  these  days  in  the  grove,  but  all 
his  callers  would  retire  after  a  short  investi- 
gation, evidently  under  the  impression  that 
no  sane  bird  would  be  willing  to  exchange 
their  society  for  that  of  'human  beings. 
Through  my  innocent  little  decoy  I  learned 
a  world  of  bird  secrets.  Relieved  from  ap- 
prehension by  his  fondness  for  me  and  his 
familiarity  with  human  beings,  his  feath- 
ered companions  have  gone  on  with  their 
housekeeping  even  in  my  immediate  neigh- 
borhood; occasionally,  in  an  excess  of  curi- 
osity, venturing  near  enough  to  study  me 
narrowly. 

Once,  when  Chupes  was  stationed  on  my 
52 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

hand,  a  humming-bird  came  buzzing  up  to 
me.  He  was  evidently  about  to  alight  be- 
side Chupes,  when  a  sudden  movement  on 
my  part  startled  the  tiny  creature  and 
caused  him  to  draw  back.  But  in  spite  of 
his  alarm,  he  buzzed  and  hummed  around 
me  for  some  time,  apparently  uncertain 
what  to  make  of  me.  I  never  realized  my 
ambition  of  taming  one  of  these  gems  of 
nature. 

Chupes'  first  approach  to  an  intimate  ac- 
quaintance with  a  bird  came  about  under 
peculiar  circumstances.  He  was  digging 
near  me  in  the  grove,  when  a  father  and 
mother  robin,  who  were  escorting  their  son 
on  one  of  his  earliest  trips  abroad,  came  fly- 
ing by  at  a  rapid  rate.  The  parents  were 
proficient  surveyors  and  they  cleared  the 
wire  fence,  against  which  the  baby  hit  with 
full  force.  In  one  moment  he  lay  on  the 
ground  in  an  attitude  painfully  suggestive 
S3 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

of  quail  on  toast.  But  for  an  occasional 
convulsive  movement  I  should  have  sup^ 
posed  him  dead. 

The  parents  looked  on  in  helpless  dis- 
tress, and  Chupes,  with  keen  interest,  while 
I  called  to  a  friend  who  was  manipulating 
a  hose  among  the  s'hrubs  near  me:  "  Here 
is  a  bird  in  a  faint !  Do  see  if  a  shower-bath 
will  restore  him." 

The  nozzle  was  immediately  turned  tow- 
ards the  bird  and  a  gentle  spray  soon  did 
its  reviving  work;  but  the  victim  of  the  ac- 
cident, instead  of  manifesting  the  slightest 
gratitude  for  services  rendered,  turned 
upon  us  the  most  indignant  of  glances  as 
soon  as  he  came  to  himself.  No  doubt  he 
attributed  his  'headache,  as  well  as  his  in- 
terrupted journey,  to  our  meddlesome  in- 
terference. Perhaps  that  is  what  he  was 
angrily  chattering  about  as  he  flew  away 
with  his  relieved  parents. 
54 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

One  day  when  I  was  visiting  the  orchard 
part  of  the  grove  I  noticed  that  two  cat- 
birds followed  me  as  I  passed  from  tree  to 
tree.  I  naturally  supposed  that  the  falling 
together  of  our  routes  was  accidental,  but 
a  repetition  of  the  occurrence  on  the  fol- 
lowing day  led  me  to  conclude  that  they 
had  a  nest  in  the  neighborhood,  and  that 
they  resented  my  presence. 

A  search  among  the  branches  failed  to 
reveal  even  the  slightest  semblance  of  a 
bird-home,  however.  So  when,  on  the 
third  day,  reinforced  by  two  wood-thrushes, 
they  again  made  quite  a  trip  in  my  com- 
pany, and,  in  answer  to  my  outstretched 
hand,  came  down  to  the  very  tips  of  the 
branches,  almost  within  reach  in  fact,  I  con- 
cluded that  the  entire  demonstration  was  a 
mark  of  approval;  something  of  the  na- 
ture of  a  certificate  of  good  conduct;  almost 
as  if  they  had  written: 
55 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

Know  all  birds  by  these  presents  that 
this  particular  member  of  the  genus  homo  is 
worthy  of  complete  trust,  having  learned, 
through  her  peculiar  advantages  in  associ- 
ating with  our  kind,  to  conduct  herself  in  a 
quiet,  reasonable,  bird-like  manner.  We 
heartily  recommend  her  to  the  feathered 
folk  of  the  grove. 

In  testimony  whereof,  we,  the  under- 
signed, do  hereby  subscribe  our  names  and 
affix  our  seal. 

GALEOSCOPTES  CAROLINENSIS. 

TURDUS  MUSTELINUS. 


A  couple  of  beautiful  little  indigo-birds 
became  quite  at  home  with  me,  and  al- 
though they  never  followed  me  in  my 
strolls,  they  pursued  their  seed-hunting 
quite  fearlessly  in  my  neighborhood. 

But  one  day  a  murderous  missile  came 
flying  over  the  fence,  and  in  a  moment  a 
mangled,  lifeless  little  body  lay  at  the  feet 
of  one  of  the  owners  of  the  grove.  We 

56 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

hoped  that  the  poor  little  victim  was  imme- 
diately stunned  and  that  he  knew  no  pain 
in  connection  with  the  fatal  blow;  and  we 
were  glad  that  the  beautiful  feathers  had 
not  been  secured  by  the  destroyer  for  hat 
or  bonnet  ornamentation,  but  there  was  no 
channel  through  which  we  could  convey  a 
single  consoling  thought  to  the  little  brown 
mate  with  the  broken  heart. 

More  and  more  I  am  impressed  by  the 
thought  of  the  blood-guiltiness  of  those 
who,  directly  or  indirectly,  encourage  the 
terrible  traffic  that  makes  so  many  martyrs 
in  the  bird  realm.  Think  of  the  songs  si- 
lenced, of  the  woods  stripped  of  these 
bright  dashes  of  color,  of  the  desolate 
homes,  of  the  starving  nestlings,  of  the 
wailing  mates,  of  the  maimed  creatures 
who,  eluding  their  would-be  captors,  es- 
cape merely  to  die  slowly  in  pain  and  hun- 
ger and  the  terrible  thirst  of  the  wounded; 
57 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

think  of  all  these  things,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  incalculable  usefulness  of  the  little 
feathered  friends,  when  you  make  your 
next  selection  for  a  hat-trimming! 

And  do  not  be  deluded  by  any  specious 
reasoning  concerning  feathers  picked  up  in 
poultry-yards  and  arranged  by  artificial 
means  to  simulate  the  genuine  article.  Not 
even  if  the  demonstration  be  carried  to  the 
extent  of  exposing  feathers  glued  on  arti- 
ficial backgrounds.  It  is  said  that  all  the 
poultry-yards  in  the  country  could  not  sup- 
ply the  demands  for  feathers  for  millinery 
purposes. 

"  A  survey  of  women's  'headgear,  as  the 
average  woman  appears  in  public,"  says 
The  Auk  of  January,  1900,  "  is  a  painful 
sight  to  the  ornithologist,  who  at  a  glance 
can  tell  the  source  of  these  hat  decorations, 
however  mutilated  and  disguised,  with 
reasonable  certainty,  and  can  realize  to 
58 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

what  an  enormous  extent  our  wild  birds  are . 
still  sacrificed  for  woman's  defacement." 

But  if  you  still  cling  to  the  idea  that  your 
hat-trimming  is  made  from  feathers  that 
have  been  shed  in  the  uninterrupted  course 
of  nature,  and  that  no  cruelty  has  been 
practised  in  obtaining  them,  do  not  fail  to 
take  into  consideration  all  those  to  whom 
your  decorations  will  appear  real,  all  those 
who  will  gladly  seize  upon  your  example  as 
a  precedent,  as  a  sanction  to  proceed  to  al- 
most any  length  in  this  line.  Do  you  not 
think  it  worth  while  to  avoid  the  very  ap- 
pearance of  evil  and  to  select  decorations 
that  have  no  connection  with  birds? 

One  other  wild-bird  experience  I  must 
mention  here.  This  time  it  was  a  golden- 
crowned  kinglet,  and  my  room,  not  the 
grove,  was  the  scene  of  action. 

The  tiny  creature  entered  our  house  dur- 
ing a  driving  autumn  storm;  and  as  he  did 
59 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

not  avail  himself  of  an  open  window  to 
make  his  escape,  I  decided  to  keep  him  un- 
der shelter  while  the  storm  lasted.  At  first 
he  was  much  frightened,  but  after  studying 
Chupes  and  myself  attentively,  he  evidently 
became  convinced  that  my  intentions  were 
friendly,  for  he  suddenly  flew  to  my  hand 
and  snatched  from  between  my  fingers  a 
fly  that  I  was  holding  out  to  Chupes. 

The  latter's  expressions  of  countenance 
as  he  viewed  this  unceremonious  appropri- 
ation of  his  dainty  were  varied  and  amusing. 
First  unbounded  surprise;  then  indigna- 
tion, gradually  working  itself  up  to  the 
pitch  of  resentment  where  nothing  short  of 
the  administration  of  a  flogging  could  ap- 
pease him.  As  a  chase  around  the  room 
did  not  result  in  the  capture  of  the  intruder, 
Chupes  stationed  himself  on  a  high  perch 
as  if  to  consider  other  tactics.  All  things 
come  to  him  w^ho  knows  how  to  wait,  the 
60 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

French  tell  us,  and  in  this  instance,  at 
least,  the  proverb  was  verified. 

The  kinglet,  disarmed  probably  by  the 
calm  of  his  enemy,  came  sailing  directly  un- 
der the  perch.  What  must  have  been  his 
surprise  to  feel  himself  suddenly  seized  by 
his  golden  crown  and  suspended  in  the  air! 
No  writ  of  habeas  corpus  could  possibly 
have  been  more  literally  carried  out.  He 
was  not  long  held  aloft,  however,  for  I 
rushed  to  his  rescue  and  released  him  as 
quickly  as  possible.  From  this  time  on  he 
seemed  to  understand  that  the  gentleman 
in  feathers  was  his  enemy,  and  the  human 
being  his  defender,  for  several  times  he 
came  to  me  for  protection,  perching  on  my 
hand  and  taking  flies  from  my  fingers 
whenever  he  could  elude  the  vigilance  of 
Chupes. 

Lest  you  should  ever  be  tempted  to  fol- 
low my  example  and  to  offer  hospitality  to 
61 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

a  golden-crowned  kinglet,  I  must  give  you 
the  sad  sequel  of  the  incident.  The  most 
blustering  of  storms  would  have  been  far 
less  disastrous  to  the  hardy  little  creature 
than  the  shelter  of  my  room,  for,  at  the  end 
of  seven  or  eight  hours,  he  died;  not  from 
Chupes'  violent  attentions,  but  from  over- 
feeding and  the  warmth  of  the  house.  I 
suppose  that  at  first  he  was  too  dazed  to 
find  his  way  out  through  the  open  window, 
and  afterwards  too  comfortable  to  care  to 
escape.  He  was  bright  and  happy  up  to  the 
very  time  when  the  fatal  cramp  attacked 
him.  Fortunately  he  did  not  suffer  long. 
I  never  see  any  of  his  kind  without  being 
reminded  that  my  well-meant  but  mistaken 
interference  caused  the  death  of  my  charm- 
ing little  visitor. 

I  have  said  that  this  tragic  incident  oc- 
curred in  the  autumn,  and  I  am  ashamed  to 
tell  you  that,  although  Chupes  had  by  this 
62 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

time  arrived  at  what  would  be  considered 
a  coming-of-age  period  in  the  robin  world, 
he  had  been  fed  like  a  baby  until  within  a 
fortnight  or  so  of  the  poor  little  kinglet's 
visit. 

I  had  not  realized  that  there  was  any- 
thing exceptional  in  his  training  until  one 
day  when  a  friend  remarked,  on  hearing  him 
call  loudly  for  his  dinner:  "  Do  you  mean 
to  say  that  that  big  bird  is  unable  to  feed 
himself?  " 

A  little  mortified  by  the  backwardness  of 
my  protege,  I  immediately  set  about  making 
him  more  independent.  He  had  manifested 
the  greatest  liking  for  flies,  no  doubt  ac- 
cording to  these  dainties  the  favored  place 
in  his  affections  that  children  reserve  for 
ice-cream  and  sweets.  Here  was  my  op- 
portunity! 

As  it  was  the  season  when  flies  were  be- 
coming torpid,  I  had  no  difficulty  in  pro- 
63 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

curing  a  number.  Armed  with  the  alluring 
bait,  I  approached  my  ward,  and,  as  usual 
at  the  sight  of  a  fly  between  my  fingers,  he 
threw  back  his  head  and  opened  his  beak, 
expecting  to  be  fed.  His  amazement  and 
disappointment  when  he  found  that  his 
hungry  attitude  was  unnoticed  were  almost 
ludicrous. 

Looking  around  to  see  what  had  hap- 
pened, he  spied  the  tempting  morsels  on 
the  table  beside  him.  He  again  put  back 
his  head  as  if  expecting  the  flies  to  walk 
into  his  beak,  but  as  no  such  marvel  oc- 
curred, he  concluded,  after  a  moment's 
waiting,  to  pick  them  up,  and  thus  the  vic- 
tory was  won.  Thereafter  he  no  longer 
opened  his  beak  appealingly  when  he  was 
hungry,  but  went  to  his  dishes  and  sup^ 
plied  himself  with  food. 

Let  me  return  once  more  to  an  incident 
of  Ghupes'  babyhood.  One  afternoon, 
64 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

when  he  had  been  with  us  about  four  weeks, 
and  while  he  was  nestling  contentedly  in  a 
soap-dish,  I  heard  a  faint,  tender  little  trill, 
which  I  fancied  came  from  a  bird  in  the 
grove.  It  had  a  far-off,  silvery  sound,  un- 
like any  bird-note  I  had  ever  heard  before; 
so  faint  as  to  be  barely  distinguishable,  yet 
so  clear  and  distinct  that  not  one  note  of 
the  musical  chain  was  missing.  In  a  short 
time  the  sound  ceased,  but  the  following 
day  I  heard  it  again  under  the  same  circum- 
stances. I  think  nearly  a  week  elapsed  be- 
fore I  traced  it  to  our  own  little  bird.  He 
was  testing  his  voice,  and  each  day  he 
strengthened  it  somewhat  by  use. 

In  the  absence  of  the  vocal  drill  which 
his  parents  would  no  doubt  have  given  him, 
he  was  learning  to  improvise,  and  his  own 
musical  genius,  together  with  some  sug- 
gestions from1  a  very  pretty  bird-whistle, 
soon  gave  him  a  repertoire  of  the  sweetest 
65 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS  JENNY 

and  softest,  the  most  weird  and  pathetic, 
and  yet,  at  times,  the  most  joyful  and  tri- 
umphant of  songs.  In  his  choicest  selec- 
tions the  sweet  little  trill  of  his  babyhood 
predominated. 

At  a  later  period  of  his  life  he  was  guilty 
of  musical  sins.  I  will  confess  them  to  you 
in  due  time. 

Very  early  in  his  career  this  brave  little 
songster  learned  the  wonderful  secret  of 
evolving  harmony  from  discord.  The 
squeaking  of  casters,  the  rumbling  of  carts, 
the  rattling  of  blinds  and  windows,  the 
rustling  of  paper,  as  well  as  talking,  laugh- 
ing, singing,  whistling, — any  one  of  these 
sounds,  or  any  combination  of  them,  used 
to  send  him  off  into  a  little  ecstasy  of  song 
which  he  would  sometimes  keep  up  for  half 
an  hour. 

The  regulation  robin-song",  cheery,  be 
cheery,  cheer  up,  cheer  up!  was  not  intuitive 
66 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

with  Chupes.  He  adopted  it  after  attend- 
ing a  vesper  service  in  the  grove. 

Notes  of  fear  and  those  of  the  love-song 
were  the  only  ones  that  came  to  him 
through  channels  of  heredity.  Of  these  I 
would  say,  as  Sydney  Lanier  said  of  the 
carols  of  his  bird  Bob,  "  he  must  have 
brought  them  in  his  mind  from  the  egg,  or 
from  some  further  source  whereof  we  know 
nothing." 

Playfulness,  I  have  learned,  exists  in 
birds  in  as  great  a  degree  as  in  lambs  or 
kittens.  Chupes'  joyful  demonstrations 
with  a  bit  of  paper — tossing  it  up  in  the  air, 
running  to  catch  it,  frisking  and  skirmish- 
ing wildly  about  with  it  in  his  beak — gave 
me  the  idea  of  testing  him  with  a  string.  I 
found  him  more  than  willing  to  chase  it, 
and  whenever  I  wished  to  make  his  happi- 
ness complete  and  his  antics  extra  amusing, 
I  had  only  to  attach  a  rubber  band  to  the 
67 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

end  of  the  string,  when  the  mirth  became 
fast  and  furious.  It  was  necessary  to  keep 
a  strict  watch  over  him  while  he  played  with 
the  rubber  band,  however,  for  it  was  a  toy 
that  he  would  persist  in  swallowing  at  the 
end  of  the  game  if  left  to  follow  his  inclina- 
tions. He  also  had  a  liking  for  bits  of 
thread,  and  on  one  occasion  when  he  swal- 
lowed a  good  portion  of  a  piece  and  en- 
tangled the  remainder  around  his  tongue, 
it  was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  we 
rescued  him  from  his  uncomfortable  and 
dangerous  predicament. 

One  day  an  ungainly-looking  mud-turtle 
was  brought  into  my  room.  The  creature 
was  about  the  size  of  a  saucer, — allowing, 
of  course,  for  oval  instead  of  circular  pro- 
portions. He  was  a  runaway  (or,  rather,  a 
slow  creepaway),  and  for  a  day  or  so  he  re- 
mained with  us,  unclaimed.  A  perforation 
had  been  made  in  his  shell,  and  from  the 
68 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

orifice  hung  a  soiled  bit  of  tethering-string. 

At  first  Chupes  watched  him  with  the 
deepest  interest  as  he  pursued  his  slow, 
monotonous  journey  around  chairs  and 
tables.  But  suddenly  the  thought  of  an  op- 
portunity for  a  game  suggested  itself  to  the 
fun-loving  bird;  and,  swooping  down  upon 
the  turtle,  he  grabbed  the  trailing  string,  at 
which  he  tugged  with  might  and  main. 
Sometimes  he  was  fairly  thrown  back- 
wards; sometimes,  in  spite  of  firmly  planted 
claws,  he  was  carried  along  as  smoothly  as 
on  a  toboggan-slide;  but  it  was  all  pure  en- 
joyment to  him,  while  the  melancholy  rep- 
tile looked  more  discouraged  and  dis- 
tressed than  ever  when  the  retarding  influ- 
ence at  the  end  of  the  string  made  itself  felt. 

A  regularly  instituted  performance  of  the 

bird's  that  caused  us  much  amusement  was, 

I  suppose,  a  natural  consequence  of  our 

having  bestowed  such  a  large  measure  of 

69 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

appreciation  on  his  efforts  to  feed  himself. 
When  he  picked  up  his  first  fly  he  received 
such  applause  and  encouragement  from  the 
spectators  that  thereafter,  whenever  he 
succeeded  in  capturing  any  kind  of  game, 
instead  of  immediately  swallowing  his  prize, 
he  would  bring  it  to  us  for  inspection  and 
approval,  uttering  all  the  time  sounds  in- 
dicative of  the  greatest  satisfaction.  He 
seemed  as  averse  to  putting  an  end  to  the 
pleasure  of  holding  his  prey  as  a  gourmand 
to  relinquishing  a  particularly  toothsome 
morsel,  even  by  swallowing  it. 

More  comical  still  was  another  perform- 
ance that  always  accompanied  the  capture 
of  a  fly  or  any  like  dainty.  As  a  friend  re- 
marked, it  strongly  reminded  one  of  a  boy 
calling  out  to  those  for  whose  benefit  he  is 
showing  off:  "  Just  see  how  much  I  can  do 
with  one  'hand  tied  behind  me!  " 

While  Chupes  still  held  his  game  in  his 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

beak,  he  would  pick  up  other  objects:  a  leaf, 
a  bit  of  paper,  a  string;  just  as  many  things 
as  he  could  possibly  carry,  all  the  time,  pa- 
rading up  and  down  before  us,  challenging 
our  admiration,  while  he  repeatedly  threw 
down  all  but  the  fly  or  whatever  his  prize 
might  be,  only  to  recommence  the  jugglery 
of  picking  them  up.  So  the  play  would 
go  on  until  the  little  fellow  became  tired, 
when  'he  would  eat  his  dainty  with  great 
relish. 

The  shaking  and  rattling  of  belts  or 
straps  or  any  objects  with  jingling  and 
clinking  attachments,  like  buckles,  always 
wrought  Chupes  up  to  the  highest  pitch  of 
merriment.  We  arranged  a  game  for  him 
of  the  nature  of  "  Button,  button,  who  has 
the  button?  "  in  which,  with  hands  behind 
us,  we  did  our  best  to  pass  the  rattling 
thing  from  one  to  another  so  rapidly  as  to 
keep  him  from  locating  it;  but  the  bird  al- 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

ways  won  the  game.  He  would  fly  from 
shoulder  to  shoulder,  looking  behind  us 
for  the  hidden  object  and  meeting  each 
jingle  and  rattle  with  a  peculiar  return 
squeak  which  he  used  on  no  other  occasion. 
It  was  probably  intended  for  an  imitation 
of  the  metallic  and  leathery  sounds. 

He  was  always  so  ready  to  show-off  for 
visitors.  I  wish  you  could  have  seen  how 
wonderingly  old  and  young  used  to  watch 
him  as  I  presented  him  with  a  little  parcel 
in  which  I  told  him  he  would  find  a  fly.  He 
never  saw  the  preparation  of  the  package, 
but  he  knew  w'hat  it  all  meant,  and  he 
would  pull  and  tug  and  unroll  until  he  got 
at  the  heart  of  the  bundle,  when  he  would 
seize  the  prize  and  triumphantly  hold  it 
aloft!  This  very  effective  little  perform- 
ance was  the  result  of  my  having  carried 
him  a  fly  in  a  handkerchief  when  he  was 
learning  to  feed  himself. 
72 


THE  HERO  ENTERS  SUDDENLY 

From  the  earliest  stages  of  my  acquaint- 
ance with  my  little  feathered  friend,  he  gave 
evidences  of  the  deepest  affection  for  me. 
Even  as  a  mere  baby,  when  opportunity  of- 
fered, he  would  nestle  down  on  my  shoul- 
der, where  he  would  keep  up  a  tender  little 
chattering  and  cooing;  and  another  favor- 
ite perch  of  his,  particularly  while  I  wrote, 
was  the  back  of  my  left  hand.  Here,  also, 
he  would  cuddle  down  as  in  a  nest,  While  his 
head  would  turn  from  side  to  side — the 
bright  eyes  watching,  now  my  face  and 
again  the  progress  of  my  writing — and 
much  of  the  time  his  rippling  little  song 
kept  pace  with  the  sound  of  my  pen. 

If  fhe  could  have  had  his  way  he  would  al- 
ways have  been  with  human  beings,  and 
there  was  never  the  slightest  indication  that 
he  longed  for  any  birthright  joys  of  which 
he  had  been  deprived;  nevertheless,  when 
the  cold  autumn  days  came,  the  friend  who 
73 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

had  aided  me  in  his  rescue  feared  that  he 
might  miss  his  outings  in  the  grove  and  the 
occasional  sight  of  his  own  kind,  so  she  set 
about  finding  a  mate  for  him.  The  thought 
was  a  kind  one  and  it  resulted  in  the  rescue 
of  another  bird;  this  time,  one  that  had  seen 
the  harder  side  of  life. 
74 


II 

MISS  JENNY'S  FORLORN  ADVENT 

Miss  JENNY,  the  second  robin,  was  found 
in  a  baker's  establishment.  Now  bakers, 
when  they  do  not  put  hurtful  ingredients  in 
their  bread,  are  public  benefactors — objects 
of  envy  even;  for  to  nearly  every  small  boy 
or  girl  there  comes  a  time  when  any  one 
connected  with  a  bakery  or  a  confectioner's 
establishment  is  viewed  with  envious  eyes, 
and  perhaps  way  down  in  the  child's  heart 
is  the  hope  that  some  day  or  other  he  may 
rise  to  the  dignity  of  dealer-out  of  the 
dainties,  with  the  right,  of  course,  to  regale 
himself  at  pleasure  with  the  choicest  arti- 
cles in  stock.  But  for  a  poor  little  wild 
75 


MR,  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

bird  penned  in  a  cage,  neither  a  bakery  nor 
a  confectioner's  establishment  has  any  such 
fascination.  Jenny  had  no  doubt  often 
beaten  herself  against  her  prison  bars  in  her 
efforts  to  escape.  In  some  way  or  other 
the  feathers  had  been  worn  from  around 
her  beak,  leaving  the  flesh  raw.  Her  back 
was  humped  from  her  inability  to  stand 
erect  in  her  close  quarters;  her  wing  feath- 
ers were  broken  and  draggled;  her  breast 
was  so  muddy  and  food-encrusted  as  to 
have  almost  lost  its  original  color;  and  this 
poor,  frightened,  wretched,  almost  de- 
formed bird  was  the  mate  selected  for  the 
refined  Mr.  Chupes! 

I  am  glad  to  say  that  it  had  been  no  easy 
matter  to  obtain  even  Jenny,  because  it 
proved  that  few  robins  had  been  trapped 
during  the  season,  or,  at  any  rate,  had  sur- 
vived their  imprisonment.  As  I  looked  at 
this  pitiful  object,  scuttling  around  my 


Miss  JENNY. 

77 


MISS  JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

room  like  a  rat  instead  of  a  bird,  terrified  at 
the  liberty  accorded  her,  and  only  feeling 
somewhat  reassured  when  she  found  her 
way  into  the  cage  and  was  able  to  look  out 
at  us  through  her  prison  bars,  it  did  not 
seem  to  me  possible  that  any  trapper  of 
birds  could  realize  the  cruelty  or  the  injus- 
tice of  his  action  when  he  captures  and 
imprisons  the  wild,  free,  happy  crea- 
tures. 

Jenny  came  to  me  one  day  at  about  four 
in  the  afternoon,  wild  as  any  bird  you  have 
ever  seen.  At  eight  in  the  evening  of  the 
same  day  she  was  perching  on  my  hand  and 
eating  crumbs  from  my  fingers.  Chupes,  in 
the  mean  time,  looked  on  with  benevolent 
interest,  but  he  showed  unmistakable  signs 
of  resenting  the  liberty  when  Jenny  was 
placed  near  him.  She  in  her  turn  refused  to 
approach  him  or  to  allow  him  near  her,  and 
this  state  of  antagonism  was  kept  up  for 
79 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

months.  Indeed,  to  the  end,  Chupes  main- 
tained his  touch-me-not  attitude  towards 
Jenny;  but  mingled  with  it  there  seemed  to 
be  a  certain  high-minded  pity  for  her  weak- 
nesses, and  an  amiable  toleration  of  her 
vagaries.  At  times,  when  she  was  not  urg- 
ing his  participation  in  them,  he  even  mani- 
fested an  amused  interest  in  some  of  her 
performances.  But  although  he  never  de- 
parted one  jot  from  his  first  attitude,  you 
will  see  how  completely  Jenny's  feelings 
changed  towards  him  as  time  went  on. 

In  making  the  selection  of  her  name  we 
were  influenced  by  the  Cock-Robin  and 
Jenny-Wren  line  of  thought,  minus  the 
tragic  ending.  There  was  the  idea  of  lov- 
ing companionship,  the  hope  that  in  each 
other's  society  they  might  find  compensa- 
tion for  the  loss  of  many  bird  privileges, 
and  various  other  natural  and  laudable  am- 
bitions for  the  little  couple  actuated  us,  Sut 
80 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

the  scheme  met  the  fate  of  many  another 
well-laid  plan. 

Mr.  Chupes'  name  was  an  unfortunate 
selection.  I  have  already  told  how  it  orig- 
inated; but  I  am  certain  that  the  one  who 
named  him  after  the  first  baby  utterances 
had  no  idea  that  the  deed  would  have  such; 
lasting  consequences. 

As  time  went  on  and  his  wonderful  char-*, 
acter  developed,  I  resented  more  and  more 
the  unmusical  appellation  of  Chupes.  The 
Mr.,  without  which  he  was  seldom  ad- 
dressed, was  an  almost  involuntary  tribute 
to  his  superior  qualities,  a  proof  of  the  high 
esteem  in  which  he  was  held.  Jenny  was 
styled  Miss,  not  on  account  of  lady-like 
qualifications,  but  simply  as  a  sort  of  off- 
set to  the  Mr.  of  Chupes. 

It  always  seemed  to  me  as  if  some  hy- 
phenated sort  of  an  arrangement,  suggest- 
ing a  combination  of  song  and  poetry, 
81 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

might  have  been  settled  upon  appropri- 
ately for  our  artist-poet  bird.  Campanini- 
Coleridge,  or  Mendelssohn-Schiller,  or 
Capoul  de  Heredia,  for  instance.  Love 
would  soon  have  found  a  suitable  diminu- 
tive. But  it  is  not  an  easy  matter  to  put 
aside  even  an  undesirable  given  name,  as 
many  owners  of  misfit  appellations  can  tes- 
tify. So  Mr.  Chupes  he  was  from  the  out- 
set, and  as  Mr.  Chupes  he  will  always  be  re- 
membered by  his  hosts  of  devoted  friends. 
When  poor  little  Jenny  first  came  to  me 
she  seemed  unable  to  understand  her  hap- 
piness, but  she  soon  learned  to  take  all  the 
good  things  that  came  in  her  way.  The 
morning  after  her  arrival  I  carried  her 
where  the  sun's  rays  could  fall  on  her  and 
warm  her  thoroughly.  This  was  evidently 
a  new  experience,  and  at  the  earlier  stages 
of  the  proceeding  she  appeared  completely 
dazed;  but  as  the  blessed  warmth  found  its 
82 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

way  through  her  wretched  feathers,  she 
threw  back  her  head,  opened  her  beak, 
spread  her  poor  tattered  wings,  and,  gazing 
directly  at  the  beneficent  orb,  she  gave 
thanks  in  a  way  that  would  no  doubt  put 
many  of  our  thanksgiving  exercises  to 
shame. 

Shortly  after  this  Chupes  took  his  re- 
freshing morning  bath, — Jenny  meanwhile 
observing  him  attentively, — and,  as  soon 
as  he  had  vacated  the  basin,  she  jumped  in. 

We  judged  it  was  the  first  bath  of  her  life. 
Such  a  wild  splashing,  splurging  and  duck- 
ing, and,  when  it  was  all  over,  a  basin  of 
such  brown  water! 

The  performance  was  hardly  ended,  how- 
ever, when  she  seemed  to  experience  a  re- 
vulsion of  feeling.  It  was  evident  that  she 
bitterly  regretted  the  experiment.  Her 
feathers,  unaccustomed  to  the  oiling  that 
free  birds  know  so  well  how  to  give  them- 
83 


MR.  CHUPES  AND  MISS  JENNY 

selves,  'had  absorbed  much  of  the  water, 
and  she  was  literally  drenched  to  the  skin. 
Chupes  had  gone  on  with  his  preening  and 
pluming  and  was  soon  as  dry  and  glossy  as 
could  be;  but  poor  Jenny  shivered  and 
shook,  and  only  regained  her  spirits  when 
the  sun  had  thoroughly  warmed  her. 

Not  one  thing  did  she  do  toward  arrang- 
ing or  oiling  her  feathers.  She  seemed  to- 
tally ignorant  of  the  provision  kind  Nature 
has  made  for  such  emergencies,  and  the  fol- 
lowing day,  when  bath-time  camie,  no  ex- 
ample of  Mr.  Chupes',  no  coaxings  or  in- 
ducements on  our  part,  could  prevail  on  her 
to  jump  into  the  basin  as  she  had  so  fear- 
lessly done  on  the  first  occasion. 

It  seemed  an  unkind  thing  to  do,  but  I 
knew  that  the  little  bird  must  be  kept  clean 
in  order  to  be  healthy,  so  I  put  her  in  the 
Uasin  and  washed  her  thoroughly.  She  ap- 
peared as  doleful  and  injured  as  she  did 
84 


Miss  JENNY  FOLLOWS  A  GOOD  EXAMPLE. 

85 


MISS  JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

after  the  first  bath,  but  this  time  she 
preened  herself  a  little,  and  in  a  few  days 
she  was  as  anxious  as  Chupes  for  the  morn- 
ing plunge,  and  almost  as  particular  as  he 
about  the  arrangement  of  her  feathers. 

The  oiling  and  smoothing  soon  made  her 
look  like  another  bird,  and  when  we  had 
cut  off  some  of  her  most  tattered  feathers 
and  a  new  lot  had  come  in  around  her  bill, 
we  could  hardly  recognize  her  as  the  mis- 
erable little  creature  that  had  come  to  us 
that  autumn  afternoon.  Owing  to  the 
cramping  and  stunting  of  her  early  days, 
her  tail  feathers  were  always  crooked  when 
they  first  appeared,  but  by  dint  of  faithful 
smoothing  she  always  corrected  this  blem- 
ish. 

Of  course  with  regard  to  Chupes*  age  we 
could  only  t>e  a  few  days  astray  at  the  ut- 
most; tut  there  was  much  uncertainty 
about  Jenny's.  Had  s'fie  been  a  horse  or  a 
87 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

tree,  dental  or  arboreal  indications  would 
have  aided  us  in  making  our  calculations. 
As  it  was,  we  could  figure  only  from  the 
standpoint  of  a  certain  hardness  of  bone 
and  setness  of  figure.  "  Middle-aged/'  was 
the  fairly  general  verdict  when  these  tests 
were  applied  to  her.  Perhaps  the  poor  lit- 
tle creature  had  been  a  prisoner  for  years 
before  coming  to  us;  but  the  cruelty  of  that 
time  is  something  on  which  I  do  not  care 
to  dwell  except  by  way  of  discouragement 
to  all  kidnappers  of  birds. 

In  spite  of  her  immense  improvement  in 
health  and  appearance,  she  never  recov-- 
ered  from  certain  injuries  received  during 
her  stay  in  prison.  Her  heart,  for  instance, 
was  certainly  affected,  if  not  diseased,  and 
during  times  of  fright  or  great  excitement 
it  would  beat  so  wildly  that  I  could  hear  it, 
even  at  a  distance  of  four  or  five  feet.  Take 
a  pencil  and  tap  gently  but  rapidly  with  it 
88 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

on  some  hard  substance,  and  you  will  have 
the  effect  of  the  thumping  of  that  poor  lit- 
tle 'heart.  I  held  her  close  to  me  while  the 
fright  lasted,  whenever  it  was  possible  to  do 
so.  It  often  happened  that  both  birds 
needed  reassuring  at  the  same  time. 

We  could  only  account  for  Jenny's  hav- 
ing existed  under  circumstances  that  would 
have  killed  the  average  bird,  by  the  fact 
that  she  apparently  lived  to  eat.  The  organ 
of  appetite  must  have  been  abnormal  in  her 
to  begin  with,  and  in  her  prison  there  had 
been  no  scope  for  higher  aspirations.  Her 
table  manners  were  shocking.  She  ate  with 
the  mad  haste  of  a  belated  traveller  at  a  rail- 
way restaurant,  and — I  blush  to  tell  it,  but 
candor  compels  me — both  feet  were  often 
planted  in  her  dish  during  the  shovelling- 
in-of-food  performance. 

When  she  first  came  to  us  we  made  al- 
lowances for  the  ravenous  manner  in  which 
89 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

she  went  at  her  food;  attributing  it  to  the 
fact  that  she  had,  undoubtedly,  often  gone 
hungry,  and  that,  even  in  the  midst  of 
abundance,  she  perhaps  feared  her  good 
things  might  be  spirited  away  from  her  at 
any  moment.  But  the  five  years  of  plenty 
only  modified,  never  overcame,  her  greed, 
and  her  table  manners  never  improved.  It 
was  a  nouveau-riche  streak,  ever  in  evidence 
in  the  dear  little  plebeian. 

From  the  time  when  Mr.  Chupes  learned 
to  feed  himself,  'his  principal  diet  was 
grated  carrot  mixed  with  mocking-bird 
food,  and  although  at  the  outset  Jenny's 
taste  ran  exclusively  to  such  things  as 
boiled  potatoes,  bread,  wafers,  etc.,  she 
soon  learned  to  like  the  carrot  and  mock- 
ing-bird food  better  than  anything  else. 

But  apart  from  this  staple  diet,  the  most 
desirable  article  of  food  seemed  to  be  what- 
ever 7  was  eating.  No  matter  how  stealth- 
90 


MISS   JENNY'S    FORLORN   ADVENT 

ily  I  manoeuvred,  I  never  succeeded  in 
avoiding  detection  if  I  put  even  a  crumb  in 
my  mouth  in  Chupes'  or  Jenny's  presence. 
They  always  insisted  on  having  a  share  of 
my  bite. 

Whenever  my  hand  made  a  journey  to 
my  mouth,  it  was  the  signal  for  the  birds  to 
station  themselves  on  my  shoulders.  One 
on  each  side,  eagerly  bending  forward,  they 
would  inspect  my  face  so  critically  as  to 
make  deception  impossible.  At  the  slight- 
est movement  of  my  lips,  taps  of  various  de- 
grees of  sharpness  were  administered  to  my 
cheeks.  Jenny's  discipline  was  eager 
and  insistent;  Chupes',  gentle  and  plead- 
ing. 

Their  acuteness  of  perception  and  their 
determination  that  my  property  should  be- 
long to  the  commonwealth  restricted  me 
not  a  little  in  the  choice  of  things  to  be 
eaten  in  my  room.  Apples  and  wafers  gen- 
91 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

erally  constituted  my  pieces  de  resistance. 
A  mere  seasoning  of  chocolate  could  now 
and  then  be  indulged  in  with  safety, — for 
other  sweets  they  had  no  fancy, — but  the 
highest  measure  of  appreciation  was  be- 
stowed on  a  concoction  of  malted  milk,  pre- 
scribed for  me  during  days  of  invalidism. 
Can  you  not  picture  to  yourself  the  aston- 
ishment of  the  physician  when,  on  entering 
the  room,  he  saw  first  one  bird  and  then 
the  other  taking  a  sip  from  the  spoon,  while 
I  came  in  for  a  modest  third  share? 

A  little  raw  beef,  unsalted,  appeared  now 
and  then  in  their  menu,  and  occasional 
dainty  bits  of  lettuce  and  celery  vyere 
greatly  appreciated  by  them.  Jenny,  with 
her  cosmopolitan,  democratic  tastes,  would 
sometimes  gather  and  devour  wild  onions 
during  her  rambles  in  the  fields.  There 
never  was  any  difficulty  in  convicting  her  of 
the  deed,  for  the  atmosphere  of  the  most 
92 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

orthodox  of  French  stews  surrounded  her 
for  hours  after  the  garlic  indulgence. 

A  few  days  after  Jenny's  arrival  she  con- 
stituted herself  guardian  of  the  larder,  so 
rapidly  did  she  gain  courage  and  independ- 
ence. No  matter  how  generous  a  supply  of 
food  she  might  have,  she  was  in  the  habit  of 
swelling  out  her  feathers  and  going  at 
Chupes  like  a  little  bulldog,  when  he  at- 
tempted to  help  himself  even  to  his  own 
portion,  if  it  'happened  to  be  in  her  neigh- 
borhood. 

Of  course  her  pugnacity  made  it  neces- 
sary to  have  a  legal  division  of  goods  and 
chattels:  two  cages  for  the  night,  and  those 
occasional  day  incarceration  periods  of 
which  I  have  already  written,  and  two  food- 
and  water-dishes  in  the  cages;  also  a  pri- 
vate supply  for  Chupes  in  my  neighbor- 
hood, where  he  used  to  station  himself  dur- 
ing nearly  all  his  hours  of  liberty.  If  he 
93 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

entered  his  cage  for  food  I  could  never  be 
certain  that  Jenny  would  not  pursue  him. 
Now  and  then  she  even  resented  the  supply 
in  my  neighborhood  to  the  extent  of  bris- 
tling up  to  me  and  attacking  the  closed  fist 
I  shook  at  her  in  Chupes'  defence. 

And  how  differently  the  high-bred  little 
gentleman  behaved  about  his  food!  Put- 
ting aside  the  days  of  his  gobbling  infancy, 
he  never  failed  to  conduct  himself  at  meals 
like  a  model  of  deportment.  There  was  no 
mad  haste  as  in  Jenny's  case.  A  pleasant 
little  chatter  often  accompanied  his  repast, 
suggestive  of  patrician  ease  and  leisure;  and 
that  he  was  no  gourmand  was  proved  con- 
clusively by  the  fact  that  he  was  always 
willing  to  leave  the  most  luscious  meal  to 
follow  me  when  I  left  the  room,  if  I  gave 
him  the  opportunity  to  do  so. 

Strange  to  say,  although  Chupes  was  the 
dainty  one,  Jenny  was  the  more  fastidious 
94 


MISS  JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

and  exacting.  It  was  she  who  used  to  plow, 
scornfully  through  her  food,  scattering  it  in 
all  directions  when  there  was  rather  a  scant 
proportion  of  mocking-bird  food  to  the 
grated  carrot.  "  Put  a  beggar  on  horse- 
back/' remarked  a  friend  as  she  watched 
the  tramp  Jenny's  disdainful  reception  of 
her  breakfast  when  it  was  not  quite  up  to 
the  mark. 

It  was  owing  to  Jenny's  all-devouring 
greed  that  her  career  was  in  danger  of  be- 
ing cut  short  just  as  her  happiness  had  be- 
gun. She  and  Chupes  were  in  the  habit  of 
going  on  foraging  expeditions,  and  during 
one  of  these  excursions  she  discovered  a 
shoe-lace.  Happily  it  had  no  metal  tips, 
and  happily,  also,  it  was  attached  to  a  shoe. 
She  began  to  swallow  and  succeeded  in 
stowing  away  all  that  remained  loose  at  one 
end.  When  she  met  the  shoe,  she  naturally 
had  to  stop.  She  then  drew  herself  back 
95 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

and,  presto,  the  lace  was  restored.  This 
amusement  proved  so  fascinating  that  it  be- 
came a  part  of  her  daily  program,  until  one 
almost  fatal  hour,  when  she  alighted  upon  a 
lace  without  a  shoe. 

Ah,  here  was  a  treat!  Before  I  discov- 
ered what  she  was  doing  s'he  had  succeeded 
in  swallowing  an  amazing  amount  of  the 
string.  It  was  then  too  late  to  undo  all  the 
mischief,  but,  seizing  the  part  still  in  evi- 
dence, I  compelled  her  to  refund  as  much 
as  s'he  could  without  strangling.  When  it 
came  to  the  almost  suffocating  point,  I  cut 
the  lace  close  to  her  bill,  expecting  to  see 
her  expire  before  the  close  of  the  day.  She 
went  to  bed  in  her  usual  good  spirits,  l}ow- 
ever,  but  the  following  morning  I  discov- 
ered her  facing  the  wall,  showing  no  desire 
to  see  what  was  going  on  around  her,  and, 
most  alarming  of  all,  no  thought  of  eating! 

She  was  a  thoroughly  depressed  and  dis- 
96 


MISS  JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

heartened  little  bird,  and  no  wonder.  From 
the  length  of  the  shoe-lace  she  did  not  suc- 
ceed in  stowing  away,  I  knew  that  she  had 
swallowed  about  eight  inches  of  the  poison- 
ous stuff:  enough  to  kill  a  strong  child. 
There  was  nothing  to  be  done  for  her,  so 
we  left  her  to  die,  as  we  supposed.  But  her 
strong  constitution  (for  strong  it  was,  in 
spite  of  everything)  and  her  vim  seemed  to 
bring  her  around,  and  before  the  day  was 
over  she  was  frisking  about  as  usual  and 
eating  as  greedily  as  ever. 

That  was  her  last  raid  on  a  shoe-lace,  but 
she  made  one  other  experiment  in  the 
string  line  before  graduating  from  such  ex- 
ercises. 

She  was  fond  of  perching  on  the  upper 
window-sashes  where  the  shade-strings 
hung  within  easy  reach.  Her  playfulness 
had  come  gradually  to  her,  but  after  a  time 
she  learned  to  frisk  and  romp  like  Chupes, 
97 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

and  making  playful  lunges  at  these  partic- 
ular strings  seemed  to  afford  her  much 
pleasure.  Her  favorite  piece  was  thickly 
knotted  for  several  inches  from  the  end, 
and  extremely  hard.  She  danced  gleefully 
around  it  day  after  day  in  'her  moments  of 
recreation,  and  I  had  no  thought  of  danger 
in  connection  with  the  game. 

One  morning  I  sat  at  my  desk  filing  away 
papers,  under  Chupes'  supervision,  while 
Jenny  played  at  one  of  the  upper  sashes.  I 
had  no  anxiety  about  her,  and  indeed  had 
forgotten  her  whereabouts,  when  I  was 
roused  by  an  exclamation  of  horror. 

"Oh,  oh!  Hans  Huckebein!  Look, 
look!  "  ejaculated  a  friend  dramatically  and 
rather  enigmatically  as  she  entered  my 
room. 

"  Where?  "  I  asEed  in  alarm,  too  taken 
by  surprise  to  interpret  the  allusion. 

"There,    there!      On   tHe   window-sill. 
98 


MISS   JENNY'S    FORLORN   ADVENT 

Your  bird!  Do  you  not  see?  He  will  hang 
himself!  " 

Following  the  direction  of  the  indicating 
finger,  I  discovered  Jenny  dangling  wildly 
at  the  end  of  the  shade-string.  She  had 
swallowed  the  knotty  part — how  much 
more  I  could  not  then  judge — and  had  evi- 
dently started  to  fly  or  to  walk  away  after 
the  repast;  but  no  hook  and  line  'had  ever 
done  its  work  more  thoroughly.  As  in  the 
case  of  the  shoe-lace,  I  made  an  ineffectual 
attempt  to  recover  the  property,  and  finally 
cut  it  off  near  'her  beak. 

This  was  even  more  serious  than  the  for- 
mer swallowing  episode.  A  decided  Adam's 
apple  travelling  around  in  her  craw  en- 
abled us  to  follow  events  very  closely. 
Every  now  and  then  she  would  twist  her 
neck  and  open  'her  beak  and  choke  and 
splutter  and  almost  dislodge  the  unnatural 
food,  but  attempt  after  attempt  failed. 
99 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS  JENNY 

Three  days  she  struggled  and  fought,  but 
the  obstinate  ball  still  rolled  around  in  her 
craw  and  seemed  about  to  conquer,  when, 
with  one  great  gasp,  one  awful  struggle, 
she  managed  to  dislodge  about  seven 
inches  of  the  coarse,  knotted  stuff!  How 
triumphantly  she  shook  her  head  over  the 
ejected  material,  and  how  quickly  she  went 
to  work  to  replace  it  by  a  good  substantial 
meal!  During  the  enemy's  possession  of 
the  digestive  stronghold,  she  had  been  able 
to  swallow  only  enough  to  sustain  life. 

It  was  during  one  of  her  times  of  jollity 
that  she  discovered  a  register  in  the  wall 
not  far  above  the  floor.  It  evidently  af- 
forded her  great  pleasure,  and  in  this  snug 
corner,  with  the  gentle  heat  surrounding 
her,  she  was  generally  found  cuddled  down 
on  very  cold  mornings. 

During  the  first  winter  of  Chupes'  life 
and  of  Jenny's  stay  with  us,  I  went  away 

100 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

from  home  for  a  few  days,  leaving  the  birds 
in  other  'hands,  but  in  their  usual  quarters. 
The  friend  who  replaced  me  was  quite  as 
faithful  in  her  ministrations  as  I  could  pos- 
sibly have  been,  but  these  little  creatures 
had  given  me  a  place  in  their  affections  that 
could  not  be  filled  by  any  one  else,  and  they 
moped  pitifully  for  me. 

From  all  accounts,  Chupes  gave  'himself 
up  unreservedly  to  his  sorrow.  He  ate  only 
enough  to  keep  the  life  in  his  little  body, 
and  not  one  bath  did  he  take  during  my  ab- 
sence. He  was  frequently  found  in  the 
depths  of  a  dark  closet.  It  was  almost  as  if 
he  were  attempting  to  bury  himself  and  his 
heartache.  His  custodian  feared  that  he 
would  die  of  grief  before  my  return. 

Jenny  mourned  heartily  also,  but  in  a 
lesser  degree.  She  moped  and  seemed  to 
have  lost  all  her  vim,  but  she  ate  and 
bathed. 

101 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

I  shall  never  forget  the  welcome  I  re- 
ceived on  my  return.  My  substitute  ex- 
claimed :  "  I  can't  tell  you  how  thankful  I 
am  to  give  you  back  your  pets.  It  is  too 
pitiful  to  see  such  distress.  Never, 
never  again  will  I  undertake  such  a 
charge." 

When  I  appeared  in  my  room,  Jenny  flew 
and  fluttered  around  me,  fairly  screaming 
for  joy;  but  Chupes  stationed  himself  on  my 
shoulder  and  rubbed  his  soft  head  and  little 
beak  caressingly  against  my  cheek  while 
uttering  low,  tender  little  coos  that  said: 
"  I'm  so  glad  you've  come  back,  for  I  can't 
live  without  you.  Never,  never  leave  me 
again! " 

But  suddenly  he  paused  in  his  loving 
demonstrations.  He  had  become  conscious 
of  the  presence  of  the  kind  friend  who  had 
done  her  best  to  make  him  comfortable  and 
happy  during  my  absence.  In  an  instant 

102 


MISS   JENNY'S    FORLORN   ADVENT 

his  mood  changed  from  melting  tenderness 
to  vindictive  hatred.  He  flew  at  her  and 
pecked  her  hand  so  viciously  that  he  actu- 
ally drew  blood.  It  was  exactly  as  if  he 
had  said  to  her:  "  I  believe  you  were  the 
cause  of  it  all.  You  took  our  dear  one 
away  and  kept  her  from  us.  Take  that, 
and  that,  and  that,  will  you !  And  now  go, 
and  never  come  near  us  again  or  you'll  hear 
from  me!"  His  displeasure  and  distrust 
diminished  gradually  and  finally  disap- 
peared altogether,  but  the  length  of  time 
he  remembered  the  supposed  offence  was 
really  wonderful. 

One  beautiful  spring  morning  when  the 
maple  buds  were  swelling  out  into  leaves 
and  the  little  feathered  folk  from  the  South 
were  chattering  merrily  among  the 
branches,  I  noticed  Chupes  and  Jenny  at 
the  window  perch,  viewing  with  the  deepest 
interest  something  going  on  in  our  nearest 
103 


MR.   CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

trees.  Jenny,  indeed,  appeared  absorbed 
in  the  study. 

Suddenly  two  robins  rushed  angrily  at 
my  window,  nearly  into  the  room  in  fact, 
and  almost  simultaneously  Jenny  disap- 
peared under  the  bed,  while  Chupes  flew  to 
me  for  protection.  This  performance  was 
repeated  several  days  in  succession  be- 
fore I  discovered  the  cause  of  it  all.  The 
wild  robins  were  making  housekeeping 
preparations  in  the  nearest  maple.  Chupes' 
and  Jenny's  intense  interest  they  inter- 
preted as  spying  interference  and  they  de- 
termined to  rout  the  offenders.  "  Attend 
to  your  own  affairs,  you  inquisitive,  prying 
creatures  and  let  your  neighbors  alone," 
they  seemed  to  say. 

I  thought  no  more  of  the  incident  until 

a  few  days  later,  when  I  observed  in  Jenny 

unmistakable  evidences  of  having  obtained 

ideas  from  the  study  of  the  wild  birds — as- 

104 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

pirations  beyond  eating  and  playing  and 
mere  animal  content.  She  had  determined 
to  construct  a  nest,  and  from  this  time  to 
the  very  day  of  her  death,  in  all  indoor 
places  and  at  all  seasons,  she  worked  at  the 
fulfilment  of  her  project;  yet  she  never 
succeeded  in  completing  even  one.  Some 
of  her  structures  have  been  known  to  ex- 
tend over  three  feet  of  surface,  while  others 
were  so  small  that  they  could  hardly  have 
accommodated  a  single  egg,  and  all  this 
earnest  toil,  this  pathetic  preparation,  for 
the  home  to  which  no  offspring  ever 
came! 

On  one  occasion,  thinking  to  give  her  a 
few  architectural  points,  I  brought  in  a  de- 
serted nest,  but  it  was  only  an  object  of 
terror  to  her. 

I  had  noticed  that  her  impatience  with 
Ohupes  was  even  greater  than  usual  after 
the  period  of  her  prying  into  the  wild 


MR.   CHUPES    AND    MISS   JENNY 

robins'  domain,  but,  not  knowing  at  the 
time  that  s'he  was  bent  on  nest-building, 
and  that  she  greatly  resented  his  utter  in- 
difference in  the  matter,  I  could  not  under- 
stand her  unusual  manifestations  of  dis- 
pleasure. 

The  first  intimation  of  her  building  pro- 
pensities came  to  me  in  a  startling  manner. 
One  afternoon  I  was  awakened  from  my 
nap  by  a  violent  tugging  and  pulling  at  my 
hair.  Chupes,  according  to  his  custom  at 
this  hour,  had  cuddled  down  on  the  lounge 
beside  me,  and  a  mirror  opposite  gave  me 
a  view  of  the  energetic  Jenny  hard  at  work. 

At  a  good  deal  of  inconvenience,  I  might 
almost  say  at  the  risk  of  being  scalped,  I 
awaited  developments.  I  could  distinctly 
see  Jenny's  expression  of  dismay  when  her 
best  efforts  failed  to  dislodge  the  building 
material.  Finally  she  paused  as  if  to  con- 
106 


MISS   JENNY'S    FORLORN    ADVENT 

sider  the  situation,  and  at  length,  with  fine 
strategic  instinct,  she  concluded  to  make 
the  nest  at  the  literal  headquarters  of  the 
coveted  stuff.  A  violent  scratching  of  the 
stubby  little  claws,  accompanied  by  ener- 
getic shaping  movements  of  the  wings,  fol- 
lowed this  decision.  Naturally  such  heroic 
treatment  was  not  long  endurable,  and,  to 
Jenny's  great  displeasure,  I  was  compelled 
to  defend  myself.  It  was  her  habit  to  pun- 
ish me  whenever  I  transgressed,  so  on  this 
occasion  I  received  the  customary  sharp 
raps  from  her  strong  little  beak.  My  point 
was  gained,  however,  for  she  began  to  look 
elsewhere  for  a  building  site. 

When  I  close  my  eyes  I  can  see  again 
the  w'hole  ridiculous  scene  as  if  it  had  all 
happened  only  yesterday.  Chupes,  nestling 
lovingly  beside  me,  would  look  first  with 
wonder  and  positive  amusement  at  Jenny's 
107 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS  JENNY 

wild  performances,  then  questioningly  up 
at  my  face  as  if  to  say:  "  What  do  you 
think  of  all  this  nonsense,  dear?  " 

Jenny,  meanwhile,  as  fussy  and  impor- 
tant as  you  can  possibly  picture  her,  flew 
from  one  corner  of  the  room  to  another  in 
her  search  for  a  suitable  nesting-place. 
Finally  she  settled  upon  a  sort  of  shelf  over 
a  window,  and  to  this  point  she  began  to 
carry  everything  she  could  drag  away. 

My  slippers  were  first  attempted,  but 
they,  naturally,  proved  too  heavy.  After 
this  failure  came  a  brilliant  success,  for  my 
lace  pin-cushion  cover  was  soon  seen  flying 
triumphantly  through  the  air.  Handker- 
chiefs, letters,  soft  bits  of  woollen  materials 
and  all  other  available  articles  in  the  room 
were  transferred  to  the  window-top,  while 
a  telegraphic  communication  was  estab- 
lished between  my  work-basket  and  Jenny's 
nest  by  means  of  several  yards  of  thread. 

108 


MISS   JENNY'S   FORLORN   ADVENT 

The  spool  remained  in  the  basket,  but  one 
end  of  the  thread  was  unwound  and  carried 
to  the  general  tangle.  Such  havoc  could 
not  continue.  In  self-defence  I  went  to 
work  to  provide  material,  and  from  that 
time  on,  narrow  strips  of  muslin,  bits  of 
straw  and  paper  and  other  desirable  articles 
were  always  on  hand  for  the  indefatigable 
little  builder.  Happily  she  did  not  resent 
the  occasional  pulling  down  of  her  struc- 
tures. Indeed  she  seemed  rather  pleased 
than  otherwise  to  have  the  opportunity  of 
laying  a  new  foundation  now  and  then. 
Perhaps  she  always  hoped  that  better  re- 
sults would  follow  a  fresh  start. 

It  is  strange  that  the  idea  of  building 
among  the  trees  never  occurred  to  her. 
She  had  ample  opportunity,  for  we  spent 
several  hours  of  each  pleasant  summer  day 
out-of-doors.  But  her  peculiar  training 
had  no  doubt  given  her  all  sorts  of  per- 
109 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

verted  ideas,  and  while  bird  instincts  were 
strong  with  her,  the  power,  or  sense,  to 
carry  them  out  was  lacking. 
no 


Ill 

THE  ROBINS  GO  A-TRAVELLING 

IT  was  not  long  after  this  first  nesting 
demonstration  that  we  began  our  prepa- 
rations for  the  summer  outing. 

"  But  what  shall  we  do  with  the  birds?  " 
we  asked  each  other  again  and  again.  To 
this  question,  no  matter  how  we  viewed  it, 
there  was  always  but  one  answer.  "We 
must  take  them  with  us." 

Balancing  the  fatigues  and  dangers  of  the 
journey  against  the  cruelty  of  leaving  them 
where  they  would  no  doubt  pine  to  death 
for  us,  the  scales  always  tipped  in  favor  of 
their  accompanying  us;  so  at  the  end  of 
May,  we  and  they  started  on  our  northern 
journey. 

in 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

The  greatest  precautions  were  taken  to 
envelop  both  cages  in  paper,  in  order  that 
none  of  the  strange  sights  should  terrify 
the  little  travellers.  Of  course  it  was  neces- 
sary to  leave  an  opening  for  air,  and  im- 
perative that  the  drinking-cup,  with  its 
supply  of  fresh  water,  should  be  easy  of 
access.  A  small  provision  of  food  was 
placed  in  each  cage. 

At  first  both  birds  were  terrified  and 
gasped  in  an  alarming  manner,  but  when 
a  very  small  proportion  of  our  journey  was 
over  they  quite  adapted  themselves  to  their 
new  circumstances  and  began  to  take  an 
interest  in  their  surroundings.  So  little  by 
little  the  covering  of  paper  was  put  aside 
until  one  end  of  each  cage  was  uncovered. 
When  we  saw  that  the  little  creatures 
seemed  weary  of  long  perching,  we  put 
a  hand  inside  each  cage,  and  there  the 
grateful  occupants  were  glad  to  settle  down 

112 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

and  rest.  Mr.  Chupes,  who  might  be  relied 
upon  to  do  the  right  thing  and  not  attempt 
to  fly  about,  was  allowed  to  come  out  of  his 
cage  on  two  or  three  occasions,  and  the 
applause  that  greeted  his  appearance  was 
most  enthusiastic. 

On  my  travels  with  the  birds  I  always 
selected  the  most  inconspicuous  corners, 
but  in  spite  of  all  my  precautions  it  was 
almost  impossible  to  avoid  observation. 
Notoriety  even  was  my  portion  at 
times. 

"  There's  a  bird  in  this  car,  and  he's  not 
caged  either,"  I  heard  one  passenger  re- 
mark to  another  on  the  occasion  of  Chupes' 
first  appearance. 

"  Where  is  he?  "  in  a  tone  of  incredulity. 

"  On  that  lady's  shoulder;  and  listen! 
I'm  sure  I  heard  him  sing." 

And  so  the  news  passed  from  one  to 
another  and,  as  a  natural  result,  all  travel- 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

ling  conventionalities  were  broken  down, 
and  the  feathered  tourists  were  generally 
introduced  to  their  fellow  passengers. 

But  to  no  one  did  Mr.  Chupes  appear 
more  marvelous  than  to  the  kind-hearted 
porter  of  the  sleeping-car.  He  remarked 
admiringly:  "  I  would  rather  have  that 
robin  than  ten  dollars!  "  : 

Evidently  he  spoke  of  the  bird  wherever 
he  went,  for  some  time  later  when  he  ap- 
peared with  the  baggage  inspector,  he  ex- 
claimed on  entering  the  door:  "  See,  see! 
Over  there  on  that  lady's  shoulder.  There's 
the  cute  little  chap  I  was  telling  you 
about!" 

Had  there  been  any  dishonestly  inclined 
persons  quite  an  amount  of  smuggling 
might  have  been  done  on  this  occasion,  for 
the  baggage  inspector  also  fell  under  the 
genial,  friendly  little  bird's  spell;  and  satch- 
els and  hand-baggage  generally  received 
114 


THE    ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

the  most  superficial  and  hurried  investiga- 
tion. 

Jenny  came  in  for  a  share  of  notice  also, 
but  she  was  eclipsed  by  Chupes.  Could 
they  have  seen  her  in  her  mason  and  builder 
capacity,  they  might  have  had  eyes  only 
for  her. 

When  evening  came,  both  birds  were 
freed  in  my  berth.  They  made  no  attempt 
to  fly  around,  but  nestled  contentedly  on 
my  shoulders  through  the  entire  night. 

For  Custom-house  reasons  we  were  de- 
tained at  the  Bonaventure  station  in  Mon- 
treal, and  while  we  waited,  there  came  one 
of  those  rare,  restful,  welcome  lulls  in  the 
tide  of  travel.  For  a  wonder,  no  one 
seemed  to  be  going  anywhere.  The  entire 
inner  room  was  ours. 

It  was  an  excellent  opportunity  to  let  the 
birds  come  out  of  their  cages,  and  I  grasped 
it.  They  were  soon  installed  on  one  of  the 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

wide  window-sills,  where,  after  gratefully 
stretching  their  wings,  they  set  about  ar- 
ranging their  feathers. 

But  we  were  not  long  to  have  things 
entirely  our  own  way.  Within  ten  or  fifteen 
minutes  two  habitant  women  wearing  the 
wide  skirts,  square  waists,  white  necker- 
chiefs and  broad-brimmed  hats  so  delight- 
fully suggestive  of  old-world  peasantry, 
took  their  seats  at  a  little  distance  from 
us. 

A  look  in  our  direction  did  not  reveal 
anything  attractive  enough  to  hold  their 
attention,  and  they  soon  forgot  us  and  pro- 
ceeded as  if  we  were  not  present. 

First  the  quaint  hats  were  removed  and 
carefully  deposited  on  the  floor.  Next  the 
neckerchiefs  were  readjusted  and  a  super- 
erogatory smoothing  pat  or  two  given  to 
the  well-oiled  hair,  while  a  brisk  conversa- 
tion was  kept  up  concerning  village  inter- 
116 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

ests  and  the  success  that  had  met  them  at 
the  market.  Finally  they  leaned  back  in 
the  swaying  plush  chairs  and  gave  them- 
selves up  completely  to  the  delights  of  the 
hour.  It  was  evident  that  visits  to  this 
scene  of  luxury  were  rare  treats. 

"  Qu'on  est  bi'n  'cite!"  (qu'on  est  bien 
ici)  they  remarked  again  and  again,  as  they 
gazed  reverently  on  the  surrounding  plush 
and  fresco  splendors. 

But  suddenly,  the  rocking-chairs  that 
were  travelling  at  the  rate  of  many  a  knot 
an  hour  came  to  an  impressive  halt.  In 
the  course  of  the  general  investigation  their 
glances  had  again  strayed  our  way;  this 
time,  however,  they  saw  something  worth 
looking  at.  One  of  them,  pointing  excit- 
edly to  the  window-sill  in  my  corner,  ex- 
claimed: 

"  Gar'  done,  gar'  done!  (regarde  done.} 
Des  oiseaux!  Les  vois-tu  la-bas  sur  le 
117 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

chassis?  "  (Look,  look!  Birds!  Do  you  see 
them  over  there  on  the  window?) 

Then  followed  a  lively  discussion  as  to 
whether  the  birds  were  alive  or  not. 

"  Well,  me,  I  tell  you  they're  alive.  One 
moved  just  then.  Didn't  you  see  it?  " 

"  No,  I  didn't  and  I  don't  believe  they're 
alive.  They're  only  ornaments." 

"Ornaments!  What  would  ornaments 
be  doing  on  a  window-sill  of  the  Bonaven- 
ture  station!  And  why  should  cages  be  car- 
ried around  for  ornaments!  I  tell  you 
they're  alive." 

"  I  don't  believe  it.  But  let's  ask  the 
woman  anyway." 

"  Very  well,  we'll  ask  the  woman  and 
you'll  see  that  I'm  right." 

It  was  probably  with  some  instinct  of 

visiting  etiquette  that  they  donned  their 

hats,  although  they  were  only  going  to 

cross  the  room;  but  the  action,  in  whatever 

118 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

impulse  it  originated,  procured  for  them 
the  most  conclusive  of  answers. 

They  'had  hardly  time  to  ask  me  in  the 
loudest  and  most  emphatic  of  broken  Eng- 
lish if  my  birds  were  alive  or  stuffed,  when 
the  little  creatures,  seeing  the  stupendous 
hats  bearing  down  upon  them,  flew  in 
terror  to  the  upper  half  of  the  high  win- 
dow. 

The  amazement  of  one  peasant  was  only 
equalled  by  the  exultation  of  the  other. 

"  Ha,  ha!  What  did  I  tell  you?  Now  do 
you  believe  me?  " 

As  soon  as  they  understood  that  their 
hats  caused  the  panic  they  removed  them, 
and  Chupes  and  Jenny  were  induced  to  re- 
turn to  the  window-sill  where  they  could 
more  easily  be  inspected. 

In  answer  to  eager  questionings  I  told 
of  the  finding  of  Chupes  and  the  rescue  of 
Jenny;  in  fact  I  gave  a  hasty  resume  of  their 
119 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

entire  history  up  to  the  time  of  our  arrival 
in  Montreal. 

I  saw  that  the  women  were  greatly  inter- 
ested, and  I  naturally  supposed  that  their 
wonder  was  excited  solely  by  the  unusual 
experiences  of  the  birds;  -but  their  own 
remarks,  as  they  walked  away  impressively 
shaking  their  heads,  left  me  no  room  for 
uncertainty. 

"  That  woman,  there,  she  has  nothing  to 
do,  her,  for  sure,  for  sure!  " 

"  No,  indeed,  she  has  nothing  to  do,  for 
sure,  for  sure." 

They  were  soon  reinstalled  in  the  luxu- 
rious chairs;  this  time  too  engrossed  in 
thought  to  care  to  rock.  They  gazed  won- 
deringly  at  me  until  sleep  overcame  them, 
but  even  as  they  dropped  off  into  the  land 
of  Nod,  a  drowsy  murmur  of  "nothing  .  .  . 
-  to  ...  do  ...  for  .  .  .  sure  .  .  .  for.  .  .  . 
sure  "  floated  my  way. 

I2O 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

One  other  incident  of  this  waiting  time 
shows  how  Chupes  and  Jenny  attracted  the 
attention  of  representatives  of  all  classes. 

The  habitant  women  had  "  relaxed  "  com- 
pletely and  were  snoring  sturdily  when  a 
sweet  little  English  lady,  dressed  in  deep 
mourning,  entered  the  waiting-room.  It 
is  'hard  to  say  whether  she  even  glanced 
around  the  apartment;  at  any  rate  she  was 
soon  reading  so  intently  as  to  lead  one  to 
suppose  that  she  was  entirely  oblivious  of 
such  small  interests  as  travelling  compan- 
ions and  waiting-rooms.  Now  Chupes 
made  a  point  of  keeping  up  his  musical 
exercises  even  during  his  journeys.  I  have 
known  the  dear  little  fellow  to  trill  hap- 
pily in  his  paper-enclosed  cage  during  the 
entire  Jersey  City  ferry  crossing,  and  I  re- 
member that  he  warbled  all  along  the  Cana^ 
dian  route,  but  I  cannot  say  positively 
whether  it  was  a  bit  of  song  or  a  short  flight 

121 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

that  attracted  the  attention  of  the  reserved 
little  English  lady.  I  only  know  that  hav- 
ing once  sighted  my  pets,  her  eyes  kept 
wandering  to  them1  from  her  book;  but  I 
did  not  realize  the  extent  of  the  interest 
awakened  until  I  saw  'her  crossing  the  room 
in  my  direction. 

"  Will  you  excuse  me  madame,  but  is 
it  possible  .  .  .  are  those  really  ...  ?  " 

Taking  a  bird  on  each  hand  I  proved  to 
her  that  there  was  no  optical  delusion  in 
the  case,  and  to  give  you  an  idea  of  the 
genuineness  of  the  little  lady's  appreciation 
of  the  birds  I  need  only  say  that  we  three 
were  invited  to  make  a  stay  at  her  home  on 
our  return  trip. 

Our  final  destination  lay  beyond  the  city 
of  Quebec,  about  fourteen  miles  back  from 
the  St.  Lawrence,  in  the  very  'heart  of  the 
fragrant  Canadian  wilds.  No  railroad  had 
ever  desecrated  the  beautiful  spot,  so  the 

122 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

journey  out  from  Quebec  had  to  be  made 
by  stage  or  carriage.  As  we  penetrated 
farther  and  farther  into  the  country  I  fan- 
cied that  the  birds  were  as  keenly  alive  as 
ourselves  to  the  wonderful  influences  by 
which  we  were  surrounded.  Surely  the 
cool  balmy  air  was  as  refreshing  to  the  poor 
tired  little  travellers  as  to  us.  Surely  the 
bird  in  them  would  rise  to  the  appreciation 
of  great  free  stretches  of  meadow  and  range 
upon  range  of  blue  mountains  unfolding 
before  us  as  we  pursued  our  ever  upward 
way.  From  the  tops  or  the  hearts  of  frag- 
rant trees  the  voices  of  little  creatures  of 
their  own  kind  greeted  them.  The  whole 
scene  must  have  seemed  to  Chupes  like  the 
embodiment  of  the  best  things  he  had  ever 
put  in  song. 

But  at  last  the  delightful  journey  was  ac- 
complished and  we  were  at  our  objective 
point,  the  old  home  on  the  shore  of  the 
123 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS    JENNY 

little  mountain-surrounded  lake.  The  de- 
lights of  the  situation  were  beyond  words 
when  travelling-wraps  were  put  aside  and 
country  rigs  donned,  for  it  meant  that  we 
had  really  entered  into  the  blessed  free 
happy  life  of  a  camping-out  summer.  Not 
under  tents,  it  is  true,  but  with  no  more 
restrictions  than  a  tent  involves  and  greater 
security  than  one  affords. 

To  no  members  of  the  party  did  the 
pleasures  of  our  new  surroundings  appeal 
more  forcibly  than  to  Chupes  and  Jenny. 
It  was  easy  to  find  dozens  of  safe  quiet 
nooks,  and  it  soon  became  the  regular 
thing  for  me  to  take  the  birds,  my  books, 
and  my  writing  materials  down  to  the  beau- 
tiful lake  side,  where  we  would  remain  for 
hours;  the  fragrant  balsam  firs  sheltering 
us  from  sun  and  observation,  yet  opening 
their  branches  wide  enough  to  enable  us 
to  see  the  sky,  the  mountains  and  the  lake, 
124 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

with  a  boat  now  and  then  gliding  over  its 
smooth  surface. 

The  carrying  of  books  and  writing  mate- 
rials was  generally  a  mere  matter  of  form 
with  me — a  sort  of  conscience  sop — for  I 
rarely  made  use  of  either  of  them.  But  there 
was  no  lazying,  no  loafing,  for  Chupes  and 
Jenny.  They  devoted  all  their  energies  to 
work.  Such  a  rooting  up  of  moss  and  old 
leaves!  Such  discoveries  of  wriggling 
treasure!  Now  and  then  an  extra  prize  in 
the  shape  of  a  fragrant  wild  strawberry, 
with  raspberries,  pigeon  berries  and  blue- 
berries in  their  season.  Endless,  endless 
treasures  these  Canadian  woods  held! 

On  one  occasion  I  saw  Chupes  making  a 
dive  at  the  long  grass  growing  in  a  little 
open  space  near  our  nook,  and  then  with- 
drawing suddenly  as  if  not  quite  certain 
about  the  advisability  of  carrying  out  some 
plan.  This  performance  was  repeated 


;       MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

several  times;  then  came  a  pitiful  squeak 
from  the  victim,  while  Chupes  held  aloft 
and  swung  triumphantly  by  the  extreme 
tip  of  its  tail  a  poor,  frightened  baby  field- 
mouse,  whose  escape  I  very  soon  contrived. 
Many  a  gentle  little  lizard  has  gone  hurry- 
ing away  from  us  on  account  of  a  sharp 
dig  at  his  tail.  I  think  that  the  valiant 
Chupes  would  have  been  willing  to  attack 
a  small  snake  had  the  opportunity  offered. 
I  have  frequently  been  questioned  with 
regard  to  the  attitude  of  my  birds  towards 
earth-worms — the  natural  food  of  robins — 
and  the  more  I  consider  the  question  the 
more  convinced  I  become  that  their  ac- 
quired tastes  interfered  seriously  with  the 
selections  they  would  have  made  under 
natural  circumstances.  Whenever  Chupes 
succeeded  in  unearthing  a  worm  he  always 
made  a  valorous  show  of  killing  his  prey, 
but  he  seldom  ate  it.  His  indifference  in 
126 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

this  matter  diminished  slightly  as  years 
went  on,  however.  At  times  Jenny  seemed 
ravenous  for  earth-worms — I  have  seen  her 
lift  herself  nearly  off  her  feet  in  her  eager 
haste  to  gulp  one  down — yet  even  she  was 
fitful  in  her  fancy  for  them.  There  was, 
however,  a  certain  luscious  specimen  of 
worm,  found  on  parsley,  if  I  am  not  mis- 
taken, over  w'hich  the  birds  fairly  smacked 
their  beaks.  They  were  also  fond  of  meal- 
worms (always  in  stock  at  bird  fanciers'), 
but  these  dainties  are  very  rich  and  must 
be  used  sparingly.  After  too  liberal  a  diet 
of  them  my  birds  had  their  second  moulting 
period  in  one  year.  By  the  way,  they 
seemed  quite  as  eager  to  bathe  during  the 
moulting  season  as  at  any  other  time  and, 
as  I  found  it  did  not  harm  them  in  the  least, 
I  allowed  them  to  proceed  as  usual. 

Once  when  we  were  summering  in  the 
Catskills,  a  friend  brought  them,  on  a  twig, 
127 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

a  green  caterpillar  with  a  conspicuous 
growth  of  what  looked  like  Lilliputian 
shrubbery  on  the  upper  part  of  its  back 
near  its  head.  The  birds  fell  eagerly  on 
the  prize  and  proceeded  to  halve  and  quar- 
ter it,  when  suddenly  they  began  to  gasp  as 
if  in  great  pain,  and  in  a  short  time  their 
feet  were  so  swollen  that  they  could  hardly 
stand.  I  recognized  it  as  a  case  of  poison- 
ing and  administered  to  each  of  the  suf- 
ferers a  generous  dose  of  sweet-oil,  after 
which  I  bathed  the  heated  little  claws  and 
legs  until  the  influence  of  the  venom  passed 
away. 

Naturally  I  investigated  the  strange  case, 
and  I  learned  that  this  caterpillar  is  one  of 
the  most  poisonous  in  existence;  mere  con- 
tact with  it  being  enough  to  raise  a  swell- 
ing like  that  of  the  hives  on  human  flesh. 
It  belongs  to  the  Limacodidce  or  saddle- 
back family  of  caterpillars. 
128 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRA YELLING 

But  no  such  unfortunate  experience  oc- 
curred in  our  Canadian  outings.  Through 
all  this  happy  first  summer  of  our  journeys, 
not  a  single  digestion-disturbing  object  did 
the  birds  meet. 

I  generally  established  my  headquarters 
near  long-needled  pines,  cedars,  tamaracks, 
hemlocks,  balsam  firs  and  other  trees  whose 
neighborhoods  are  apt  to  be  dry;  and  in 
my  selection  of  balsam-fir  halting-places,  I 
had  a  double  object  in  view.  While  keep- 
ing a  faithful  watch  on  my  birds  I  was  able 
to  gather  large  supplies  of  the  tender,  fra- 
grant tips  for  cushions  and  pillows.  (The 
newest  growth,  distinguishable  always  by 
its  strongly  contrasting  light  green,  is  the 
only  one  available  for  the  purpose.)  One 
can  fancy  how,  afterwards,  in  shut-in  days 
when  a  heavy  mantle  of  snow  lay  over  all 
the  woodland  paths  and  weighed  down 
even  the  strongest  of  the  great  branches, 
129 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

my  balsam  pillow  spoke  to  me  of  forest 
calm  and  harmony,  of  song  and  color  and 
fragrance  and  of  all  the  dear  delights  that 
had  been  mine  in  the  gathering.  But  far 
better  than  this,  these  pillows  of  fragrant 
balsam  often  found  their  way  to  rooms 
where  suffering  reigned;  rooms  to  whose 
inmates  forest  voices  could  come  only 
through  such  channels  as  these.  I  remem- 
ber particularly,  in  one  instance  where  the 
windows  were  darkened  and  neither  sun 
nor  stars  'had  appeared  to  the  sufferer  for 
many  days,  the  touching  gratitude  of  the 
recipient  when  I  presented  her  with  one 
of  my  balsam-fir  pillows.  Yet  I  had  only 
given  her  of  my  abundance,  my  forest 
wealth!  If  you  have  never  made  the  ex- 
periment of  thus  sharing  your  summer  joys 
with  one  Who,  through  illness  or  some 
other  hindering  agency,  has  been  deprived 
130 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

of  them,  I  can  assure  you  that  it  is  a  thou- 
sand-fold  paying  investment. 

Although  the  birds  and  I  had  our  regular 
headquarters  we  did  not  confine  ourselves 
to  any  one  neighborhood.  Occasionally 
the  genuine  gypsy  spirit  of  strolling  would 
take  possession  of  us,  and  then,  at  times 
on  my  shoulders,  again  on  my  hands,  now 
flying  a  little,  a  very  little  distance  in  ad- 
vance of  me,  or  perhaps  lagging  a  few  steps 
behind — the  birds  visited  with  me  regions 
where  the  friendly  white  birch  curled  back 
its  beautiful  coat  and  generously  gave  us 
of  its  bark;  where  tremulous  aspens  and 
quivering  silver  poplars  were  ever  striving 
to  display  to  us  the  shimmering  other  side 
of  their  leafy  shields;  where  thickly-set 
maples,  elms  and  beeches  stood  guard  over 
delicate  ferns  or  where  deeper,  danker 
growths  encouraged  the  sprouting  of  the 
tiny  wax-like  Indian  pipe  of  peace. 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

Here  among  the  damp  mosses  and  the 
leafy  mold  were  the  homes  of  hosts  of 
harmless,  slimy  little  creatures  that  glided 
or  wriggled  away  at  our  approch,  or  hastily 
buried  themselves  in  their  moist  beds.  Per- 
haps a  little  farther  away,  in  higher,  dryer 
ground,  crackling  boughs  told  of  the  re- 
treat of  some  other  frightened  little  crea- 
tures of  the  wood.  By  the  way,  what  a 
great  sound  usually  results  from  the  under- 
brush passing  of  a  tiny  creature! 

On  two  or  three  occasions  we  even  saw 
the  tracks  of  bears,  but  the  Bruin  of  this 
region  is  not  the  bloodthirsty  creature  that 
our  imagination  usually  pictures.  He  pre- 
fers berries  and  forest  productions  gener- 
ally to  any  city  importations.  Sometimes, 
when  very  hard  pressed  by  hunger,  he  will 
attack  the  s'heep-fold,  but  he  always  shows 
a  wholesome  fear  of  human  beings. 

In  addition  to  the  two  roomy  cages  in 
132 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

which  my  birds  spent  the  night,  I  had  two 
small  lightly  constructed  ones  which  I  car- 
ried on  our  strolls.  In  this  way  I  felt  safe 
to  wander  freely,  for  at  the  first  intimation 
of  danger  I  could  protect  the  birds  by 
caging  them. 

But  trouble  generally  comes  from  unex- 
pected sources.  It  was  not  during  a  stroll, 
but  while  I  was  seated  out  under  the  trees 
near  the  house  that  real  danger  came  to 
them.  They  had  been  playing  near  me  in 
an  open  space,  and  were,  as  I  supposed,  in 
perfect  security,  when  all  at  once  I  was 
startled  by  their  pitiful  cries.  Chupes  was 
rushing  wildly  about,  but  Jenny's  fear  was 
so  abject  as  to  make  her  almost  rigid.  I 
started  hastily  to  go  to  their  relief,  and 
this  sudden  movement  on  my  part  averted 
their  danger.  A  sparrow-hawk  was  just 
swooping  down  upon  them,  thinking 
doubtless  that  I  was  part  of  the  tree  against 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

which  I  leaned.  As  soon  as  he  saw  that 
I  was  the  birds'  defender,  he  flew  to  a 
neighboring  stump,  from  which  he  gazed 
ruefully  on  his  coveted  prey.  Our  poor 
little  birds  were  too  terrified  to  remain  out 
doors  that  day,  so  I  carried  them  to  the 
house,  where  they  gradually  quieted  down. 
After  this  incident  they  were  more  than 
ever  averse  to  remaining  alone,  running 
and  flying  after  me  when  we  were  out,  if  I 
made  any  attempt  to  go  to  the  house.  I 
learned  a  lesson  from  this  narrow  escape, 
and  never  again  left  them  in  an  open  place 
without  being  on  the  alert  for  enemies. 

Yet  even  with  all  my  precautions, 
Chupes  had  the  following  nearly  fatal  en- 
counter with  a  hawk  during  our  summer  in 
the  Catskills: 

Both  my  birds  were  playing  very  near 
me  around  the  hill-top  tree  under  which  I 
sat,  when  all  at  once  the  great  enemy  came 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

swooping  down  upon  them.  Jenny's  atti- 
tude of  rigidity  saved  her,  but  Chupes,  in 
seeking  a  hiding-place,  flew  directly  into 
danger.  I  thought  I  saw  the  cruel  talons 
close  on  him,  and  as  the  hawk  soared  away, 
I  was  certain  that  my  little  friend  was  in 
his  strong  fierce  grasp.  But  in  spite  of  the 
apparent  hopelessness  of  the  case,  I  set  out 
to  make  a  thorough  search  for  Chupes  as 
soon  as  I  had  caged  his  companion.  Half 
an  hour  passed  without  bringing  any  trace 
of  the  missing  bird.  "  It's  no  use,"  I  ex- 
claimed dejectedly.  "  Long  before  this 
the  tender  little  fellow  will  have  been 
served  out  to  the  wife  and  babies  of  that 
terrible  hunter." 

"  Don't  give  him  up  yet,"  said  an  opti- 
mistic friend,  who,  from  the  house,  had 
observed  my  distress  and  hurried  to  my 
aid.  "  He  is  perhaps  hiding.  Let  him 
have  time  to  recover  from  his  fright." 
J35 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

How  thankful  I  was  that  I  had  listened 
to  this  advice  when,  half  an  hour  later, 
Chupes  came  warily  out  from  an  opening  in 
a  stone  wall  in  which  he  had  taken  refuge. 
You  can  easily  picture  to  yourself  the  ova- 
tion the  dear  little  fellow  received.  On  our 
return  to  the  house  the  boarders  crowded 
around  him  and  offered  him  'heartfelt  con- 
gratulations on  his  escape.  He  always 
enjoyed  being  treated  like  a  hero,  and  on 
this  occasion  he  seemed  to  realize  his  im- 
portance to  the  utmost. 

As  there  was  much  danger  to  the  birds 
in  this  exposed  region,  I  clipped  their  wing- 
feathers  more  closely  than  usual  after  this 
event  in  order  to  prevent  a  repetition  of  the 
harrowing  case,  for  their  peril  lay  in  long 
flights.  It  always  hurt  me  to  restrict  the 
birds  to  this  extent,  although  they  did  not 
seem  disturbed  by  the  limitation,  and  with 
the  late  summer  came  the  fine  new  plum- 

136 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

age  that  gave  them  complete  liberty  once 
more.     This  was  safe  for  indoor  seasons. 

I  have  mentioned  Chupes'  juvenile  fear- 
lessness with  regard  to  cats.  Happily  dread 
of  them  came  with  years  and  experience. 
Jenny,  from  the  time  of  her  coming  to  us, 
evinced  wholesome  terror  at  the  approach 
of  these  dangerous  enemies,  but  neither  she 
nor  Chupes  possessed  the  quickness  of 
wild  birds  in  sighting  their  foes,  hawks  ex- 
cepted.  It  was  a  wonderful  instinct  that 
taught  Chupes,  even  as  a  baby,  to  detect 
danger  in  the  object  circling  so  far  off  in 
space  as  to  be  invisible  to  the  keenest 
human  eye.  A  plaintive,  almost  heart- 
rending cry  was  his  means  of  announcing 
the  terrifying  discovery;  and,  generally,  by 
the  time  the  loup  garou  had  materialized  to 
the  extent  of  enabling  us  to  see  a  dark 
speck  in  the  distant  ether,  Chupes  was  safe 
under  the  nearest  fortification,  represented 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

to  'him  by  a  bed,  a  sofa,  a  chair  or  any  other 
equally  substantial  and  shelter-affording 
object.  Remember  that  this  occurred 
before  he  had  exchanged  views  with  birds 
on  any  subject  whatever;  he  was  only  at 
what  corresponds  to  the  goo-goo  stage  of 
articulation  and  understanding  in  human 
infants  when  he  came  to  us — therefore  this 
fear  could  not  have  been  instilled  into  him 
by  parental  or  neighborly  precept. 

At  the  sight  of  a  hawk,  Jenny  always 
stiffened  into  terrified  rigidity.  Either  she 
was  too  panic-stricken  to  move,  or  else  she 
considered  this  attitude  the  most  inoffen- 
sive and  inconspicuous  she  could  assume. 
These  were  doubtless  the  hours  in  which 
she  "  a  monk  would  be,"  but  with  the  dis- 
appearance of  the  hawk  she  would  resume 
her  busy  arbitrary  ways  and  her  severe  dis- 
ciplining of  Chupes. 

!A  bit  of  detached  tree-bark  always  had 
138 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

a  paralyzing  effect  on  both  birds,  but  there 
is  a  possible  explanation  of  this  which  I 
must  not  fail  to  mention. 

During  this  same  summer  at  the  Cats- 
kills  we  were  visited  by  one  of  the  most 
terrible  storms  I  have  ever  known.  A 
tree  at  a  few  feet  from  the  house  was  cleft 
from  top  to  bottom  by  lightning,  and  the 
bark,  attached  to  the  tree  only  by  one  end, 
was  left  hanging  in  slender  strips  several 
feet  in  length.  The  crash  was  terrible,  and 
the  birds,  as  well  as  the  human  beings,  felt 
the  shock  keenly.  With  one  accord  the  lit- 
tle creatures  ran  under  the  sofa,  and  from 
this  vantage-point  they  occasionally  peeped 
out  as  if  to  demand  an  explanation  of  the 
disturbance. 

While  the  panic  was  still  at  its  height,  a 
venturesome  member  of  the  party  rushed 
out  and  secured  a  sample  strip  of  the  bark, 
which  he  brought  to  the  room  where  we 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

were  all  assembled.  It  has  several  times 
occurred  to  me  that  the  birds  may  have 
connected  that  period  of  terror  with  the  bit 
of  bark.  At  any  rate,  from  that  time  on,  I 
had  only  to  place  a  piece  where  there  was 
property  to  protect,  and  no  sign  of  "  no 
trespassing"  was  ever  more  religiously 
observed. 

A  still  more  remarkable  case  of  their  rec- 
ognition of  cause  and  effect, — and  one  in 
which  there  is  no  room  for  doubt, — came  to 
my  notice  shortly  after  we  began  to  use  the 
electric  light. 

The  birds  always  took  a  great  interest  in 
my  movements,  particularly  Chupes,  who 
never  allowed  me  to  open  a  bureau  drawer 
or  a  box  without  insisting  upon  investigat- 
ing its  contents.  The  turning  on  and  off  of 
the  electric  light  never  failed  to  attract  their 
attention.  They  seemed  to  know  that  light 
140 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

or  darkness  would  result  from  a  turn  of  the 
button. 

One  beautiful  bright  day  when  they  were 
sunning  themselves  at  the  window  a  cloud 
suddenly  came  up,  temporarily  depriving 
them  of  their  sun-bath.  They  turned 
around  simultaneously,  and  in  an  injured 
sort  of  way  they  looked  first  at  the  electric 
button  and  then  at  me  as  if  to  say:  "  Why 
did  you  do  that?  " 

In  connection  with  things  that  were  ob- 
jects of  terror  to  them,  I  must  not  forget  to 
include  all  garments  of  light  or  bright  hues. 
The  exception  to  this  rule  I  will  mention 
later. 

My  sombre  writing  costume  was  the  one 
in  w'hich  they  liked  me  best;  a  change  to 
anything  gayer, — particularly  if  the  goods 
were  figured, — met  with  evident  disap- 
proval. "  That  is  certainly  our  dear  one's 
141 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

face,"  they  seemed  to  say,  "  but  what  has 
happened  to  her  feathers?  " 

One  of  their 'callers,  who  appeared  in  a 
camers-hair  shawl,  will  well  remember  the 
terrible  panic  caused  by  the  sight  of  her 
wrap.  The  birds  evidently  thought  that 
their  last  hour  had  come,  and  dashed  wildly 
against  walls  and  windows  in  their  en- 
deavor to  escape  from  the  awful  apparition. 
Even  after  they  had,  in  a  measure,  quieted 
down,  nothing  could  induce  them  to  ap- 
proach the  friend,  although  she  tried  to  al- 
lure them  with  their  best-loved  dainties. 

With  this  deeply-rooted  aversion  to  gay 
colors,  Ohupes  entertained  a  strange  incon- 
sistency; the  exception  of  which  I  spoke  a 
moment  ago.  He  manifested  a  decided  pre- 
dilection for  a  certain  shade  of  yellow.  I 
have  often  seen  him  alight  in  a  perfect  rap- 
ture on  the  hand  of  a  person  knitting  in  this 
color;  his  joyful  gambols  testifying  to  the 
142 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

fact  that  something  about  it  delighted  his 
heart. 

Once  he  showed  unmistakable  approval 
When  inspecting  a  bonnet  that  had  been 
renovated  by  substituting  a  knot  of  bright 
red  for  blue.  Only  those  who  witnessed  the 
critical  survey  can  appreciate  all  it  indicated 
in  the  line  of  observation  and  taste. 

But  we  have  wandered  far  away  from  the 
Canadian  summer-home,  and  I  still  have 
something  to  tell  you  of  our  experiences  in 
that  ideal  region. 

In  front  of  the  house  there  is  a  delightful 
old-fashioned  gallery,  and  here  the  birds  re- 
ceived their  regular  callers.  Two  slate-col- 
ored juncos  soon  learned  to  come  for 
crumbs,  and  although  they  never  became 
tame  enough  to  venture  closer  than  within 
a  foot  or  two  of  me,  their  trust  was,  never- 
theless, quite  remarkable.  They  sometimes 
contended  violently  with  Chupes  and  Jenny 
'43 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

for  a  share  of  their  crumbs,  and  felt  so  at 
home  on  our  gallery  that  they  one  day 
brought  their  whole  brood  to  visit  us.  The 
young  birds  were  even  more  fearless  than 
their  parents,  crossing  the  threshold  and 
entering  the  house  in  their  search  for 
dainties. 

This  pleasant  friendship  continued  as 
long  as  we  remained  at  the  lake,  and  I  fancy 
that  our  migration  and  theirs  occurred  at 
about  the  same  date. 

Chupes,  you  will  remember,  through  his 
visits  to  the  grove,  had  early  become  ac- 
quainted with  creatures  of  his  own  kind, 
but  it  was  only  during  the  first  mild  days  of 
the  spring  following  her  coming  to  us  that 
Jenny  learned  the  meaning  of  out-doors  or 
gained  any  idea  of  wild-bird  life.  I  shall 
never  forget  the  awe  with  which  the  little 
creature  contemplated  the  immensity  of  the 
scene,  as  she  stood  for  the  first  time,  mo- 
144 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

tionless,  entranced,  under  the  boundless 
dome.  Then  the  voices  of  the  trees  seemed 
to  reach  'her,  the  wind-stirred  branches 
beckoned  like  friendly  arms,  and  she  flew  to 
their  shelter. 

Perhaps  it  was  because  her  wings,  still  in- 
fluenced by  the  close  confinement  of  her 
earlier  days,  refused  to  carry  her  far,  or  be- 
cause the  treatment  she  received  from  the 
wild  birds  was  of  an  unchivalrous  nature, 
that  she  did  not  remain  away.  Later,  love 
for  Chupes  and  affection  for  me,  also  the 
recognition  of  her  dependence  on  me,  re- 
strained 'her;  but  at  this  earlier  date,  had 
circumstances  been  favorable,  I  think  she 
would  have  been  glad  to  cast  her  lot  in  with 
her  little  wild  fellows. 

She  always  appeared  so  flattered  when 
they  came  in  her  direction,  although  I 
am  certain  that  their  notice  of  her  was 
prompted  by  a  very  unflattering,  in  fact  an 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

extremely  contemptuous,  sort  of  curiosity. 

It  seemed  to  me  that  she  gave  extra 
touches  to  her  feathers  and  assumed  a 
would-be  jaunty  appearance  at  the  ap- 
proach of  these  genuine  articles, — not 
make-believes,  like  the  'half-human  Chupes, 
— yet  a  thrashing  was  the  invariable  out- 
come of  the  scrutiny.  But  poor,  foolish 
little  Jenny  never  seemed  to  recognize  the 
ignominy  of  the  case.  She  always  came 
flying  back  to  me  with  an  air  of  triumph,  as 
if  she  had  achieved  the  most  brilliant  of  so- 
cial successes. 

I  fancy  that  if  she  could  have  known  of 
the  custom  of  hoarding  such  trophies  as 
well-filled  dancing-engagement  cards,  she 
would  have  arranged  some  corresponding 
record  of  her  engagements.  Perhaps  some- 
thing like  the  following: 

Monday — Received  a  severe  beating 
from  a  king-bird. 

146 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

Tuesday — Was  well  pecked  by  a  grackle. 

Wednesday — Nearly  lost  an  eye  through 
a  dig  from  a  cat-bird. 

Thursday — Had  a  large  tuft  of  feathers 
torn  from  my  breast  by  a  robin,  etc.,  etc. 

But  democrat  of  democrats  though  she 
was,  she  drew  the  line  at  receiving  atten- 
tions either  hostile  or  friendly  from  English 
sparrows.  I  have  seen  her  rout  a  whole 
band  of  the  pert  little  fellows,  when  they 
were  simply  minding  their  own  business 
and  not  thinking  of  interfering  with  her.  It 
was  surprising  with  what  haste  they  would 
retreat  before  her.  I  had  fancied  that  they 
would  turn  upon  her  and  retaliate,  but  they 
always  submitted  meekly  and  fled. 

The  terrible  sparrow  aggressiveness  of 
which  we  'hear  so  much  has  never  come  in 
the  line  of  my  observations.  I  made  a  par- 
ticular study  of  the  cheery,  noisy  little  crea- 
tures last  winter  with  a  view  of  learning 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

something  of  their  iniquities.  Let  me  tell 
you  what  I  saw.  Remember  that  I  am 
making  no  plea  either  for  their  extermin- 
ation or  preservation,  merely  stating  what 
is  to  me  an  interesting  fact. 

Through  the  winter  we  strew  our  ver- 
anda-top with  crumbs,  knowing  how  wel- 
come these  little  lunches  are  to  the  often 
sorely-tried  feathered  visitors  of  the  sea- 
son. For  the  benefit  of  a  certain  quadru- 
ped, of  which  I  will  tell  you  later,  we  always 
keep  a  supply  of  cracked  walnuts  in  a 
sheltered  corner  of  a  window-sill  on  this 
same  veranda.  Day  after  day  sparrows  and 
juncos  gorged  themselves  on  these  dainties, 
when  the  opportunity  for  doing  so  pre- 
sented itself.  But  the  juncos  were  served 
first,  sparrows  awaiting  their  turn  until 
their  superiors  had  feasted. 

One  day  there  appeared  on  the  veranda- 
roof  two  little  olive-coated  "  brindle  birds," 
148 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

and  at  the  sight  of  these  tiny  visitors  (much 
smaller  than  either  sparrows  or  juncos),  the 
others  respectfully  retired. 

The  new-comers  were  pine-siskins,  and 
they  seemed  wonderfully  at  home  with  us 
from  the  outset.  Without  any  fear  of  dis- 
turbing them,  we  could  stand  at  the  win- 
dow and  watch  the  sharp,  black,  well- 
pointed  little  beaks  as  they  neatly  picked 
the  kernel  from  the  shell,  the  delicate  claw 
aiding  by  holding  the  nut  in  place  during 
the  excavation.  When  the  craws  could  ac- 
commodate no  more  the  little  couple  would 
fly  to  a  tree  at  the  side  of  the  veranda, 
where  they  would  clean  their  bills  and 
smooth  their  feathers  with  an  air  of  great- 
est satisfaction. 

But  it  was  not  until  the  siskins  had  left 
that  the  juncos  felt  free  to  attend  the  re- 
past; while  the  English  sparrows,  with  their 
reputation  for  unbounded  pugnacity,  came 
149 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

in  for  what  might  correspond  to  steerage 
accommodations,  or  the  holding  of  a  third 
and  rather  undesirable  mortgage  on  a  prop- 
erty. 

They  no  doubt  have  their  share  of  faults 
and  they  are  most  unmusical,  but  I  think 
that  more  odium  than  they  deserve  falls  on 
them.  Their  persistent  cheerfulness  always 
appeals  to  me,  yet  I  can  assure  you  that 
many  among  them  have  good  cause  to 
grumble.  A  dragging  broken  leg,  an  in- 
jured wing,  a  little  stump  for  a  claw,  these 
are  some  of  the  marks  that  distinguish  reg- 
ular pensioners  of  mine.  The  latter  infirm- 
ity is  attributable  to  Jack  Frost,  but  perse- 
cuting boys  are  probably  responsible  for 
the  former. 

Cedar-birds,  white-throated  sparrows, 
woodthrushes,  woodpeckers,  vireos,  king- 
fishers and  juncos  were  our  most  intimate 
bird  neighbors  at  the  lake.  It  must  have 
150 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

been  mortifying  to  Jenny  that  they  did  not 
even  consider  her  worth  beating. 

I  must  tell  of  some  other  neighbors  of 
ours;  not  members  of  the  bird  family,  but 
nevertheless  of  interest  to  Chupes  and 
Jenny  for  domestic  economy  reasons.  I  al- 
lude to  the  wasps  commonly  known  as  yel- 
low-jackets. They  came  to  my  notice  in 
the  following  remarkable  way: 

The  old  Canadian  home  is  constructed  in 
a  manner  to  let  in  as  much  of  out-doors  as 
possible.  Hence  long  French  windows, 
reaching  almost  from  ceiling  to  floor,  and 
guiltless  of  shades  or  curtains,  as  well  as 
great  doors,  both  front  and  back,  stand 
open  during  all  propitious  weather,  and  the 
house  is  flooded  with  light  and  fragrance; 
while  from  each  of  the  spacious  openings 
the  happy  inmates  have  uninterrupted 
views  of  sky,  lake,  mountains,  meadows 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

and  forests,  with  a  glimpse  or  two  of  a  dis- 
tant home. 

I  sat  one  day  at  one  of  the  wide  windows 
trying  to  read;  but  the  beautiful  book  of  na- 
ture spread  out  before  me  interfered  se- 
riously with  the  carrying-out  of  my  inten- 
tion. Suddenly  the  wing  of  a  fly  dropped 
down  upon  the  printed  page,  but  this  did 
not  impress  me  as  remarkable;  and  even 
when  it  was  followed  by  a  second  wing,  I  at- 
tributed the  circumstance  to  a  zephyr 
prank  merely.  But  when  at  length  not 
only  wings,  but  also  several  legs,  lay  on  my 
book — the  entire  locomotive  furnishings  of 
some  unfortunate  fly,  in  fact — I  felt  that 
there  could  be  no  mistake  in  the  matter;  it 
was  a  premeditated  dissection.  So  gather- 
ing up  the  constituent  parts  that  composed 
my  evidence,  I  went  in  search  of  the  origi- 
nal trunk  and  the  dissector. 

I  found  neither,  but  I  came  upon  one  of 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

the  colleagues  of  the  surgeon,  a  second  yel- 
low-jacket, who  was  busily  dismembering 
another  fly.  When  'he  had  s'horn  the  vic- 
tim of  legs  and  wings,  he  flew  away  with  the 
body.  This  act  seems  to  be  performed 
merely  with  an  idea  of  doing  away  with  use- 
less material  and  of  making  the  prey  more 
portable;  not  to  prevent  escape.  The  male 
yellow-jacket  is  the  hunter, — the  female  re- 
maining at  home  to  take  care  of  the  young, 
— and  he  carries  the  booty  away  in  order 
to  fill  the  thousand  hungry  mouths  await- 
ing it  in  the  nest.  Of  course  the  male  takes 
his  occasional  share  of  the  game,  but  in  all 
my  watching  I  never  saw  one  of  them  eat- 
ing. 

You  will  understand  that  Chupes  and 
Jenny  resented  the  presence  of  these  hunt- 
ers, as  through  them  they  were  deprived  of 
so  much  of  the  spoil  that  they  looked  upon 
as  their  lawful  prey.  And  you  will  also  un- 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

derstand  how  welcome  the  yellow-jackets 
are  in  wild  regions  (and  indeed  civilized  re- 
gions, also)  where  flies  abound.  The  deer- 
fly,  that  scourge  of  surveyors  and  campers- 
out,  is  their  first  choice.  Next  comes  the 
horse-fly,  then  the  blue-bottle,  after  this  the 
house-fly  and  so  on  in  a  decreasing  scale 
until  small  insects  are  reached. 

The  value  of  the  yellow-jacket  is  recog- 
nized in  European  countries  and  his  pres- 
ence generally  welcomed  by  butchers. 
Chupes  and  Jenny  never  attacked  a  yellow- 
jacket.  Even  when  I  killed  one  and  offered 
it  to  them,  they  cast  it  aside  after  merely 
sampling  it.  The  taste  no  doubt  corre- 
sponds to  the  rather  bitter  odor  emitted  by 
crushed  bees  and  wasps.  It  is  surprising 
how  perfectly  this  odor  may  be  represented 
by  the  crystalline  substance  known  as  salol. 

If  one  desires  to  know  in  what  particular 
form  the  inevitable  serpent  trail  made  itself 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

felt  in  this  earthly  paradise,  I  shall  have  to 
put  down  my  pen  to  consider,  to  search,  in 
order  to  recall  anything  objectionable.  In 
June  we  sometimes  had  a  few  mosquitoes, 
and  an  almost  imperceptible  sand-fly  did 
have  a  fancy  for  burying  its  head  in  our 
flesh  occasionally.  Now  and  then,  after  cer- 
tain rains,  we  were  visited  by  small  black 
flies — buffalo  gnats — that  gave  a  savage 
sting  which  left  a  track  of  blood  on  one's 
face  or  neck  (hands  last  choice  always),  but, 
after  all,  these  were  rare  occurrences,  and 
I  am  certain  that  in  this  place  we  reached 
the  minimum  of  'summer  discomfort,  and 
derived  the  maximum  of  benefit  and  pleas- 
ure. 

Jack  Frost  visits  the  Quebec  region 
early,  and  before  the  middle  of  September 
the  mountain  sides  are  usually  one  crimson, 
golden  mass,  emphasized  by  the  ever-deep- 
ening green  of  the  winter  foliage. 
'55 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

People  have  spent  the  entire  year  in  the 
old  camping-house;  double  windows,  huge 
stoves  and  enormous  wood-piles  enabling 
them  to  laugh  at  cold  and  storms;  but  we 
did  not  linger  beyond  the  pleasant  early  au- 
tumn season.  You  may  fancy  that  it  was 
with  reluctance  that  we  left  this  beautiful 
resort  and  turned  our  faces  to  the  south  in 
orthodox  bird-fashion. 

On  this  occasion  the  robins  seemed  to 
understand  the  reasons  for  their  experience 
when,  packed  in  their  cages,  they  started 
on  their  journey.  It  meant  only  a  short 
period  of  confinement,  after  which  they 
would  have  their  usual  liberty  in  new  sur- 
roundings, or  else  the  old  surroundings  so 
long  left  behind  as  to  have  the  appearance 
of  novelty.  Therefore  no  terrible  fright,  no 
alarming  gasping,  accompanied  the  return 
journey,  although  Jenny  managed  to  break 
two  or  three  of  her  tail-feathers.  I  mention 

'56 


THE    ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

this  as  their  absence  is  so  noticeable  in  her 
photographs. 

After  the  first  experience  the  birds 
seemed  to  have  perfect  confidence  in  me  on 
all  moving  occasions  except  one,  when  I 
think  their  faith  in  my  sound  judgment 
must  have  been  sorely  tried. 

What  could  it  mean  to  them  when  their 
cages  were  hastily  enveloped  in  shawls  and 
they  were  hurried  out  of  their  comfortable 
quarters,  one  wild  March  night,  to  be  de- 
posited in  darkness  in  some  unknown 
place,  and  after  an  apparently  senseless  wait 
of  three  or  four  hours,  to  be  brought  back 
again  to  the  very  place  from  which  they 
started?  They  could  not  understand  the 
meaning  of  the  awful  street-cry  that  had 
roused  us  from  the  deepest  and  mo'st  dan- 
gerous of  slumbers  to  the  knowledge  that 
the  cruel  flames  had  already  enveloped  a 
part  of  the  house,  and  that  great  firebrands 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

were  being  hurled  by  the  mad  March  winds 
past  the  very  windows  of  the  room  in  which 
they  slept.  After  the  safety  of  the  human 
beings  was  insured,  the  helpless  little  crea- 
tures in  the  cages  were  cared  for.  What 
was  the  saving  of  the  most  precious  of  in- 
animate household  gods  compared  with 
the  security  of  these  loving,  trusting,  help- 
less living  things! 

It  was  during  the  birds'  second  winter 
with  me  that  I  had  them  photographed. 
The  first  attempt  was  in  a  green-house. 
This  resulted  in  several  failures  and  one  suc- 
cess; but  it  was  evident  that  experiments 
would  have  to  be  made  with  several  cam- 
eras before  the  most  satisfactory  results 
could  be  obtained.  And,  as  the  artist  could 
not  bring  his  entire  photographic  parapher- 
nalia to  the  green-house,  we  went  to  the 
studio. 

The  birds  were  at  first  rather  alarmed  at 
158 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

the  sight  of  the  formidable-looking  cam- 
eras— the  very  largest  available  were  called 
into  requisition — but  after  a  time  they  lost 
all  fear,  and  felt  quite  at  home  in  the  studio. 
Where  Chupes  is  -bathing,  and  where  they 
are  emerging  from  the  bath,  all  feeling  of 
strangeness  has  been  overcome. 

You  will  have  no  difficulty  in  recognizing 
the  saucy,  alert  Miss  Jenny,  or  the  dignified, 
patrician  Mr.  Chupes.  I  fancy  that  even  in 
the  photographs  you  will  be  able  to  trace 
the  great  difference  that  existed  in  the  char- 
acters of  these  two  specimens  from  the 
same  family.  Take  the  picture  in  which 
they  stand  together — frontispiece,  for  in- 
stance. Note  Jenny's  aggressive,  square 
head  and  the  sturdy  pose  of  her  stout  little 
legs  and  feet,  in  contradistinction  to  the 
dainty  and  sensitive  appearance  of  Chupes. 
In  the  very  texture  of  their  claws,  skin  and 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

feathers,  there  was  all  the  difference  that 
exists  between  the  most  delicate  silks  and 
the  stoutest  and  most  durable  of  coarse 
woolen  or  cotton  goods. 

Soulful,  poetic,  musical,  dainty;  no  lover 
of  his  kind  but  a  worshipper  of  his  human 
friends,  was  Chupes. 

Alert,  aggressive,  practical,  fiercely  af- 
fectionate, and,  above  all,  maternal,  was 
Jenny.  It  is  with  such  a  sense  of  satisfac- 
tion that  I  dwell  on  the  thought  that  this 
poor  thwarted  little  bird  finally  met  one 
of  her  own  kind  who  returned  her  affec- 
tion. 

There  is  something  misleading  about  the 
comparative  size  of  the  birds  in  the  pho- 
tographs. (Frontispiece  cut.)  Chupes 
was,  in  reality,  larger  than  Jenny,  yet  I 
think  the  impression  conveyed  by  the  pic- 
tures is  that  he  was  the  smaller  bird. 

It  was  a  great  disappointment  to  me  that 
1 60 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

we  were  not  able  to  secure  a  photograph  of 
the  birds  taking  a  sun-bath.  This  was  their 
hour  of  worship,  and  their  ecstasy  no  doubt 
equalled  that  of  the  most  ardent  of  Zoroas- 
trian  priests  as  they  ministered  at  their  fire- 
altars.  So  absorbed  were  my  little  sun-wor- 
shippers in  their  devotions  that  they  ap- 
peared oblivious  to  everything  going  on 
around  them.  I  have  often  experimented 
at  such  times,  taking  liberties  of  the  nature 
of  finding  and  examining  the  little  open- 
ings at  the  sides  of  their  heads  that  repre- 
sented ears,  putting  my  finger  in  their  open 
beaks,  parting  their  breast-feathers  and 
smoothing  their  backs,  but  they  were  too 
rapt  to  notice  me. 

Under  ordinary  circumstances  when,  by 
a  touch  of  my  finger,  I  indicated  to  Chupes 
some  part  of  his  attire  that  required  atten- 
tion, he  would  always  do  a  little  smoothing 
with  his  bill,  but  at  sun-bath  time  he  was  far 
161 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

beyond  such  trivial  considerations  as  mis- 
placed feathers. 

The  birds  never  perched  on  these  occa- 
sions; they  reclined.  Their  eyes  were  al- 
ways fixed  unflinchingly  on  the  great  orb, 
their  heads  thrown  back,  their  beaks  open, 
their  wings  and  tails  spread  and  resting  on 
the  ground  or  wherever  they  chanced  to  be, 
and  each  individual  feather  stood  out  by  it- 
self until  the  birds  possessed  the  appear- 
ance of  etherial,  illuminated,  fluffy  beings, 
twice  their  natural  size. 

In  the  photograph  of  Chupes  and  his 
attendant  (the  presence  of  the  latter 
in  the  picture  is  an  accident,  by  the  way; 
she  supposed  herself  out  of  camera  range), 
you  have  some  idea  of  his  loving,  trustful 
attitude  towards  his  human  friends.  No 
doubt  the  story  of  the  little  waifs  enables 
you  to  understand  much  of  their  affection 
and  intelligence,  but  in  order  to  have  really 
162 


MR.  CHUPES  is  CONFIDENTIAL. 
1G3 


THE    ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

appreciated  their  wonderful  capacities  of 
heart  and  brain,  you  would  have  'had  to  be 
personally  and  intimately  acquainted  with 
them. 

One  word  about  the  conservatory  of 
which  you  have  a  glimpse  in  the  photo- 
graph. 

It  is  the  last  of  the  three  large  green- 
houses of  which  the  conservatory  consists. 
The  first  (see  photograph  near  grape-ar- 
bor) is  a  cold  grapery,  and  is  kept  at  a  mod- 
erately low  temperature  in  winter,  while  in 
summer  its  thermometer  registers  about 
the  average  heat  in  its  out-door  neighbor- 
hood. 

A  green-house  of  this  kind  is,  to  my 
way  of  thinking,  one  of  the  very  best  solu- 
tions of  the  wounded  or  stranded  bird  ques- 
tion. There  is  absolute  safety  from  cats; 
the  little  invalid  can  receive  the  best  atten- 
tion without  learning  to  lean,  entirely  on  the 
165 


MR.   CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

companionship  and  support  of  its  human 
friends;  excellent  opportunities  for  digging 
and  delving  are  afforded  the  little  convales- 
cent, and,  with  a  frequently  replenished 
bath,  cleanliness  is  as  possible  as  under  the 
freest  circumstances.  With  increasing 
wing  strength,  the  little  patient  can  take 
higher  and  higher  flights,  and  when  he  is 
able  so  soar  to  the  full  extent  of  the  green- 
house,— to  take  care  of  himself,  that  is, — 
he  will  find  windows  open  in  the  roof,  if  the 
day  is  auspicious,  and  through  them  he  may 
re-enter  the  world  from  which  he  involun- 
tarily retired. 

I  have  seen  a  beautiful  flicker  with  a 
bleeding,  helpless  wing  go  through  all  the 
stages  I  have  just  described  and  finally  fly 
away  through  the  roof  of  this  Hotel  des  In- 
valides  with  a  perfectly  clean  bill  of  health. 

If  a  bird  is  going  to  recover  he  will  gen- 
erally do  so  before  the  close  of  the  season  in 
166 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

which  he  received  his  injury;  at  any  rate, 
precautions  are  taken  through  which  a 
summer  bird  is  never  in  danger  of  being 
launched  in  mid-winter,  while  a  wounded 
winter  visitor  is  made  as  comfortable  as 
possible  through  trying  summer  seasons. 

Nestlings  requiring,  as  they  do,  frequent 
feeding  from  early  in  the  morning  until 
bed-time  cannot  be  banished  to  the  green- 
house. They  must  be  under  constant  sur- 
veillance; but  the  grapery  makes  a  fine  play- 
ground for  them  when  they  have  acquired 
a  certain  measure  of  independence,  and  is, 
as  a  rule,  the  establishment  from  which  they 
graduate,  unless,  like  Chupes  and  Jenny, 
they  will  not  go  free  at  all. 

Our  winters,  although  even  in  their 
tenor,  were  always  full  of  interest;  but  of 
course  all  out-door  incident  was  lacking, 
from  the  birds'  standpoint  that  is,  except 
such  as  we  viewed  through  closed  windows. 
167 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

There  was  to  us  humans,  however,  a  sugges- 
tion of  perpetual  summer  in  the  compan- 
ionship of  these  dear  redbreasts.  Not  a 
day  passed  without  its  interesting  record  of 
their  performances.  Not  an  hour  could 
one  spend  in  their  company  without  deriv- 
ing amusement  and  benefit  from  the  con- 
tact. 

I  must  tell  you  that,  although  Jenny  be- 
came less  and  less  playful  and  more  and 
more  absorbed  in  her  nest-building,  she 
nevertheless  took  time  for  the  occasional 
and  earnest  contemplation  of  herself  in  the 
mirror.  I  have  seen  her  throw  down  her 
building  materials  and  rush  to  my  bureau, 
where  she  would  take  up  her  stand  on  a  lit- 
tle box  that  served  as  a  pedestal,  and  there 
she  would  gaze  and  gaze  and  gaze  at  her 
reflection  with  the  greatest  complacency. 

One  day  I  placed  a  fine  new  supply  of 
strings  on  the  top  of  her  cage  and  it  seemed 
168 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

to  give  her  the  idea  of  starting  housekeep- 
ing there.  She  worked  with  bill,  claws  and 
wings  at  the  arrangement  of  things  until 
lunch-time  came;  then  she  jumped  down 
and  rushed  into  her  cage,  always  in  a  hurry 
as  usual.  It  was  while  raising  her  head, 
after  taking  a  sip  of  water,  that  her  eye  fell 
on  the  building  material  on  top  of  her  cage, 
visible  through  the  wires. 

She  had  hardly  made  the  discovery  be- 
fore she  was  up  on  the  highest  perch,  drag- 
ging strings  and  rags  down  through  the 
bars.  When  she  had  gathered  a  load  al- 
most equal  to  her  own  bulk,  she  tugged  it 
out  through  the  door,  and  up  on  to  the  roof 
of  her  cage,  where  she  again  worked  it  into 
some  sort  of  shape. 

She  evidently  felt  that  she  had  struck  a 
mine  of  supplies,  and  such  a  busy  time  fol- 
lowed. The  performance  I  have  described 
to  you  was  repeated  all  through  the  day 
169 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

with  great  satisfaction,  but  when  bed-time 
came  the  critical  inspection  Jenny  gave  her 
work  seemed  to  reveal  some  defects.  She 
retired  in  an  unusually  thoughtful  mood, 
and  even  fell  out  of  bed  in  her  dreams. 
This  occurrence  I  attributed  to  a  possible 
nightmare  in  connection  with  the  con- 
stantly-added-to  and  never-growing  nest. 
At  any  rate,  bright  and  early  the  next 
morning  she  removed  all  her  furnishings  to 
a  nook  where  there  was  no  delusive,  mis- 
leading foundation. 

I  must  relate  a  few  incidents  of  a  second 
Canadian  summer,  one  spent  in  the  pictur- 
esque valley  of  the  St.  Francis: 

We  were  near  the  river  brink,  on  the  very 
outskirts  of  one  of  those  typical  straggling, 
one-streeted  Canadian  villages.  Hills  and 
dales,  woods  and  clearings,  genuine  country 
surroundings  were  our  portion.  No  moun- 
tains, and  none  of  the  primitive  wildness  of 
170 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

our  first  summer,  but  a  quiet,  peaceful,  fra- 
grant haunt,  with  few  human  habitations 
around  us. 

One  of  our  favorite  resorts  was  a  gently 
rising  pasture  land.  Here  we  spent  two  or 
three  hours  of  each  fine  day  under  the 
shade  of  a  noble  elm.  There  was  a  super- 
abundance of  brilliant  red  spiders  and  light- 
green  worms  in  this  region,  and  many  a 
carmine  or  pale-green  streak  on  my  books 
and  papers  still  testifies  to  a  deed  of  gore 
performed  by  the  knightly  Mr.  Chupes.  He 
seemed  fascinated  by  the  highly  colored 
prey. 

One  day  Jenny  flew  into  a  hedge,  where 
she  remained  quiet  for  such  a  length  of 
time  that  I,  at  last,  feared  harm  had  over- 
taken her.  On  going  to  investigate  I  found 
her  with  her  wings  tightly  clasped  against 
her  body  and  her  eyes  fairly  protruding 
with  fright.  On  the  other  side  of  the  hedge 
171 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS   JENNY 

stood  a  cow  with  moist  nose  stretched  out 
towards  the  rather  dingy  little  redbreast, 
which  she  may  have  mistaken  for  an  apple. 
At  any  rate,  she  was  blowing  great,  long, 
inquiring,  and  anything  but  reassuring, 
snorts  in  Jenny's  direction,  and  but  for  the 
protecting  hedge  she  would  probably  have 
munched  the  terrorized  bird. 

There  was  a  canary  in  the  house  where 
we  were  staying,  and  I  obtained  from 
Dickie's  owner  permission  to  let  him  out  in 
the  room  with  my  birds  occasionally.  I 
afterwards  felt  that  I  had  not  done  the  kind- 
est thing  by  the  little  fellow  in  giving  him  a 
taste  of  liberty  and  bird  companionship  of 
which  he  had  to  be  deprived  at  our  depart- 
ure. 

Chupes  tolerated  him,  probably  for  the 
sake  of  his  musical  ability,  and  he  even  con- 
descended to  weave  a  few  Dickie  strains 
into  some  of  'his  own  compositions;  but  as 
172 


THE   ROBINS  GO  A-TRAVELLING 

far  as  sociability  was  concerned  he  insisted 
on  the  canary's  strict  observance  of  a  sort 
of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  the  location  of 
which  was  determined  by  my  exclusive  lit- 
tle autocrat. 

Jenny  was  delighted  to  have  something 
to  mother,  and  she  took  the  little  creature 
under  her  wing  almost  literally;  yet  not 
quite,  for  when,  at  roosting  times,  he  would 
try  to  creep  under  her  feathers,  she  disci- 
plined him  mildly,  and  he  soon  learned  that, 
although  he  was  welcome  to  snuggle  up  to 
her  side,  he  must  not  attempt  greater  liber- 
ties. Dickie  was  allowed  to  sit  up  late  on 
two  or  three  occasions,  yet  he  was  always 
caged  for  the  night.  It  was  an  easy  matter 
to  secure  him,  especially  when  'he  was 
drowsy,  by  placing  the  top  of  his  cage  over 
him. 

The  house,  or  to  give  it  its  full  dignity  of 
title,  the  manse,  stood  on  a  hillside,  and 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

a  few  rods  farther  up  was  the  little  old 
church;  the  plain,  unpretentious  mother 
of  several  large,  fine-looking,  prosperous 
daughters  in  neighboring  parishes.  People 
generally  came  early  to  services  in  order  to 
secure  an  opportunity  for  a  visit  to  the 
quiet  God's-acre  at  the  back  of  the  church; 
and  both  coming  and  going  they  learned  to 
halt  on  the  hillside  to  look  up  at  the  win- 
dow for  the  two  redbreasts  and  the  little 
yellow-ball.  They  were  seldom  disap- 
pointed, for  here,  on  Sunday  mornings,  the 
birds  were  usually  seen,  perched  on  the 
backs  of  chairs,  inspecting  the  church- 
goers. 

I  always  made  everything  secure  before 
going  to  service,  so  I  had  no  anxiety  about 
the  little  friends  and  I  frequently  joined  the 
hillside  congregation  and  listened  outside 
my  window  to  a  rousing  Chupes  and  Dickie 
concert,  Jenny  (her  little  charge  always  at 


THE   ROBINS   GO   A-TRAVELLING 

her  side)  coming  in  with  an  occasional 
thumping  bass-drum  or  squeaking  bag-pipe 
effect. 

These  were  no  doubt  Dickie's  halcyon 
days.  He  loved  his  little  feathered  friends 
and  revelled  in  his  occasional  hours  of  lib- 
erty. He  learned  to  know  me  also  and  even 
to  eat  from  my  hand,  but  he  never  became 
perfectly  fearless. 

175 


IV 

A  DIGRESSION  ON  SQUIRRELS 

The  wildest  spot  in  this  entire  neighbor- 
hood was  a  deep  ravine,  a  little  to  the  right 
of  the  church.  On  our  occasional  visits  to 
the  place  I  wondered  at  the  scarcity  of  bird- 
homes, — there  were  only  two  or  three  rob- 
ins' nests  to  be  seen, — for  the  quiet  and  the 
heavy  foliage  seemed  so  inviting,  but  a  lit- 
tle later  I  marvelled  that  any  birds  ever 
went  near  this  den  of  thieves;  for  that  is 
what  I  discovered  it  to  be. 

One  morning  my  attention  was  attracted 
to  the  ravine  by  the  pitiful  cries  of  a  robin. 
I  hurried  out  to  investigate  the  case,  and 
176 


A  DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

there  I  be'held  a  sight  that  would  have 
frozen  the  blood  in  the  veins  of  the  mater- 
nal-hearted Jenny,  could  she  have  under- 
stood the  purport  of  the  deed. 

A  mother  robin  was  flying  frantically 
around,  calling  out  in  an  agony  of  distress 
while  a  cannibal  of  a  red  squirrel  sat  on  a 
branch,  calmly  devouring  one  of  her  nest- 
lings. There  was  no  question  of  rescue,  for 
the  baby  was  dead,  half-eaten  in  fact;  but  I 
took  a  savage  satisfaction  in  spoiling  the 
remainder  of  the  meal  of  the  bloodthirsty 
little  kidnapper.  He  was  only  one  of  a 
band  inhabiting  the  ravine.  I  will  frankly 
acknowledge  that  then  and  there  I. expe- 
rienced a  revulsion  of  feeling  towards  his 
whole  kind. 

And  now  I  should  like  to  tell  you  how 

my  gradually  decreasing  prejudices  against 

squirrels  in  general  were  finally  overcome 

(not  that  I  ever  entertain  any  but  revenge- 

177 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

ful  feelings  towards  the  Canadian  cannibal 
and  all  his  family!),  and  how  it  happens  that 
a  little  red  squirrel  and  I  are  the  closest  of 
friends,  and  that  he  is  certain  to  find  a 
hearty  welcome  when  he  comes  to  my  win- 
dow for  his  daily  meal.  He  is  the  "  certain 
quadruped  "  of  which  I  have  already  made 
rather  mysterious  mention,  and  his  story 
will  take  you  back  to  the  New  Jersey  home 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  grove. 

I  was  awakened  very  early  one  summer 
morning  by  a  mysterious  rattling  of  the 
slats  of  my  most  remote  blinds,  and,  before 
I  could  investigate  the  matter,  the  strange 
performance  began  at  a  second  set  of  blinds 
and  then  passed  on  to  a  third. 

Burglars  were  out  of  the  question.  The 
world  was  too  wideawake  to  encourage 
housebreakers.  Purple  grackles  were 
croaking  and  seesawing  in  chorus,  robins 
urging  the  world  to  universal  cheerfulness, 
178 


179 


A  DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

and  all  the  chanticleers  of  the  neighbor- 
hood were  having  their  autocratic  say. 

But  I  was  not  long  to  remain  in  suspense. 
The  strange  sounds  soon  reached  me  from 
an  adjoining  room,  the  communicating 
door  of  which  was  open.  A  double  window 
coming  entirely  within  my  range  of  vision 
was  here  the  scene  of  the  supernatural  visi- 
tation. There  were  the  moving  slats,  and 
there,  at  last,  in  plain  sight,  was  the  cause 
of  all  the  disturbance — a  little  red  squirrel! 

No  doubt  he  would  have  entered  my 
room  at  the  first  stirring  of  the  shutters  had 
not  a  screen  prevented  him.  Unfortunately 
for  the  depredator,  these  defences  against 
flies  and  mosquitoes  were  at  every  window. 
He  had  allowed  himself  to  be  vanquished 
three  times,  but  on  this  fourth  occasion  he 
had  evidently  determined  to  conquer,  for 
he  clattered  up  and  down  and  all  over  the 
screen,  looking  for  a  vulnerable  point. 
181 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

Now  and  then,  as  if  to  consider  new  tac- 
tics, he  halted;  and  it  was  during  one  of 
these  periods  of  meditation  that  I  had  my 
first  good  look  at  him.  I  had  often  seen 
coats  of  members  of  his  family  nailed  on 
stable-doors,  or  other  advantageous  drying- 
places,  and  the  little  fellow's  attitude,  as  he 
fastened  himself  out  on  the  screen, — his 
paws  spread,  his  tail  limp  and  hanging, — 
suggested  a  nail  at  each  of  his  four  corners. 
But  happily  the  points  of  attachment  were 
merely  his  own  little  claws,  not  iron  nails  or 
tacks.  Happily,  also,  he  was  safely  lodged 
in  his  skin,  where  I  hope  he  will  remain  un- 
til a  gentle  death,  at  the  close  of  a  long  and 
pleasant  life,  opens  to  him  the  doors  of  the 
happy  hunting  ground. 

Red  squirrels  are  no  rarity  in  the  grove; 

and  the  little  fellows  are  on  such  a  friendly 

footing  with  the  inmates  of  the  house  in  the 

grove   that   they   often   enter  the   upper 

182 


A  DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

rooms  and  make  their  nests  in  these  quar- 
ters, where  they  are  so  certain  of  immunity 
from  all  molestation. 

But  our  home,  although  tree-surrounded 
and  standing  back  a  little,  is  not  remote 
enough  from  the  street  to-  invite  such  confi- 
dence; at  least,  never  before  this  remark- 
able morning  had  it  been  so  honored,  and 
I  could  not  imagine  what  had  drawn  this 
little  waif  to  us  and  make  him  so  eager  to 
enter. 

However,  here  he  was,  and  we  were  de- 
termined he  should  not  have  cause  to  brand 
us  as  inhospitable.  To  have  enabled  him  to 
enter  by  doing  away  with  the  screens  would 
'have  been  carrying  altruism  too  far;  but  we 
hit  upon  a  compromise.  A  supply  of  nuts 
and  bits  of  paper  and  other  things  suitable 
for  bedding  were  placed  in  a  convenient 
corner  of  an  outer  window-sill.  The  little 
visitor  approved  of  our  offerings,  but  his 
183 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

particular  fancy  was  taken  by  strings  that 
had  been  patiently  wound  round  and  round 
a  rattling  slat  in  the  hope  of  silencing  it. 
These  were  soon  cut  by  his  sharp  teeth  and 
added  to  the  store  we  had  presented  for  ac- 
ceptance. 

The  squirrel's  presence  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  day  puzzled  us  not  a  lit- 
tle. I  consulted  with  the  inmates  of  the 
house  in  the  grove  as  to  the  cause  of  his 
change  of  residence,  but  they  were  as  much 
in  the  dark  about  the  matter  as  I  was. 
Moreover  they  had  an  extra  puzzle  or  two 
of  their  own  which  they  propounded  to  me 
for  solution. 

What  had  caused  the  recent  disturbance 
in  the  bird  settlements  of  our  neighbor- 
hood? Why  had  companies  of  purple 
grackles,  of  robins,  of  thrushes,  of  orioles, 
of  cat-birds,  of  indigo  birds,  of  woodpeck- 
ers, and,  indeed,  representatives  of  all  the 
184 


A   DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

feathered  tribes  in  the  grove,  remained  so 
persistently  around  the  house  of  late,  and 
called  so  unmistakably  for  help?  And  what 
was  the  meaning  of  the  eight  or  ten  squir- 
rels' heads  at  the  foot  of  one  of  the  great 
pines?  What  enemy  was  terrorizing  the 
usually  peaceful  community? 

It  was  a  mystery,  yet  one  little  ray  of 
light  shining  out  of  the  darkness  made  my 
part  of  the  puzzle  clearer.  Whoever  the 
common  enemy  might  be,  he  it  was  who 
had  sent  Mr.  Rufus  to  rattle  my  slats  and  to 
seek  protection  in  my  room.  Now  to  find 
and  exterminate  the  ogre  was  the  next  step. 
Exterminate  him  if  he  proved  to  be  a  bird 
or  a  beast  in  search  of  his  daily  food,  that  is. 
Past  experience  had  taught  us  that  if  he 
was  a  boy,  killing  the  poor  little  creatures 
for  wanton  sport,  it  would  be  difficult  to  ob- 
tain redress. 

All  day  long  a  strict  watch  was  kept  in 


MR.  CHUPES   AND  MISS  JENNY 

the  grove,  but  no  helpful  information  was 
gained  till  towards  night,  when  cries  of  dis- 
tress from  half-awakened  birds  gave  evi- 
dence that  the  marauder  was  a  nocturnal 
one,  but  by  force  of  circumstances  only, 
on  account  of  strict  surveillance,  as  we 
learned  when  we  identified  him.  At  home 
he  does  his  hunting  by  daylight. 

There  was  no  getting  at  him  in  the  dark- 
ness, but  with  the  first  signs  of  dawn  the 
faithful  watchman  caught  sight  of  a  large 
white  body,  before  which  the  smaller  crea- 
tures retreated  in  terror.  True,  nothing 
was  gained  beyond  this  one  fleeting 
glimpse  of  him,  yet  it  was  a  clue. 

With  strained  necks  and  eyes  directed 
towards  the  tree-tops,  a  whole  reconnoi- 
tring party  went  through  the  grove  during 
the  day  of  the  discovery,  but  the  white 
spectre  did  not  reveal  itself.  Further  terror 
186 


A   DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

at  night;  more  persistent  search  the  next . 
day,  and,  at  last,  success. 

There,  directly  in  front  of  the  house, 
perched  in  the  secluded  top  of  a  very  high 
tree,  was  a  magnificent  snowy  owl.  Time 
was  allowed  for  one  admiring  glance  at 
him,  then  one  bang  and  the  reign  of  terror 
was  over! 

No  one  seemed  to  understand  this  fact 
more  thoroughly  than  the  poor,  frightened 
little  creatures  whose  danger  had  been  so 
great.  Bright,  inquisitive  eyes  peered  out 
from  bushes  and  trees,  while  the  sportsman 
took  his  beautiful  prey  and  measured  the 
wide  wings — forty-four  inches  from  tip  to 
tip. 

When  we  were  once  rid  of  the  foe  we 
could  take  time  to  consider  the  cause  of 
his  presence.  What  had  brought  the  giant 
so  far  from  his  usual  haunts?  Small  owls 
are  frequently  found  in  the  grove,  where, 
187 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

alas!  they  do  no  little  mischief;  but  never 
had  there  been  anything  to  approach  the 
wholesale  ravages  of  this  formidable  crea- 
ture. Never  before  had  one  of  his  kind 
been  seen  in  our  neighborhood. 

Of  course  we  could  only  surmise,  build- 
ing our  conjectures  on  the  fact  that  a  fear- 
ful storm  had  visited  us  just  before  these 
evidences  of  fright  among  the  birds  and 
squirrels  had  been  observed.  Had  the 
tempest  come  from  the  region  of  eternal 
snows?  Had  it,  on  its  way,  met  this  beau- 
tiful being  nurtured  in  an  Arctic  cradle,  ac- 
customed from  his  infancy  to  gaze  on  great, 
dazzling  tracts  of  snow  and  ice,  magnificent 
of  plumage,  strong  of  wing,  keen  of  sight 
and  glad  and  proud  of  heart?  Had  the 
noble  bird,  exulting  in  his  strength,  dared 
to  court  the  tempest,  gloried  in  battling 
with  the  storm?  And  at  last,  when  too  late, 
had  he  recognized  his  danger  only  to  be 
188 


A   DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

driven  on  and  on  until  he  was  brought  to 
our  quiet  little  settlement  in  a  tame,  tem- 
perate land? 

Poor  creature,  he  had  done  no  wrong. 
In  devouring  the  innocent  little  beings  of 
the  grove  he  had  merely  followed  out  the 
instinct  of  self-preservation;  he  only  asked 
a  livelihood.  But  he  was  as  much  out  of 
place  as  a  man  born  in  advance  of  his  cen- 
tury, as  a  human  being  with  thoughts  too 
great  to  be  understood  by  his  fellows.  If 
only  one  could  have  sent  him  back  again  to 
his  northern  home! 

I  understand  that  these  creatures  are 
willing  to  make  friends  with  men.  He 
might  perhaps  have  been  caught  and 
tamed,  but  his  fate  would  then  have  been 
that  of  a  captive,  and,  no  matter  how  kindly 
treated,  he  would  have  felt  the  fetters. 
After  all,  the  quick  shot  was  merciful. 

Now  he  is  simply  a  specimen.  His  beau- 
189 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

tiful  snowy  coat,  with  its  occasional  con- 
trasting black  markings  intensifying  the 
whiteness,  is  filled  with  some  foreign  sub- 
stance; great  yellow  eyes  not  his  own  look 
from  his  noble  head;  his  black  claws,  over 
which  the  feathers  fall  like  an  avalanche, 
grasp  an  artificial  bar,  and  he  lives  under  a 
glass  case! 

But  let  us  hope  that  tHe  spirit  that  ani- 
mated him,  call  it  what  you  will,  is  soaring 
joyously  through  icy  elysian  fields,  revel- 
ling in  some  Arctic  paradise  of  birds! 

And  now  let  me  tell  you  more  of  the  lit- 
tle being  whose  coming  to  us  was  one  of 
the  results  of  the  snowy  owl's  visit.  He 
evidently  did  not  care  to  lose  our  friend- 
ship, even  when  the  presence  of  the  enemy 
no  longer  drove  him  to  us.  True,  he  picked 
up  his  bed  and  bedding  and  started  house- 
keeping in  parts  unknown  as  soon  as  the 
price  was  removed  from  his  head;  but  from 
190 


A   DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

his  first  appearance,  to  the  time  of  the  pres- 
ent writing,  he  has  not  failed  to  make  us  a 
daily  visit.  Sometimes,  indeed,  the  inquisi- 
tive little  nose  is  seen  flattened  against  the 
window-pane  or  screen  several  times  in  one 
day.  His  coming  is  announced  by  a  sound 
so  out  of  proportion  to  his  little  feet  that 
the  uninitiated  look  for  an  animal  as  large 
as  a  dog  instead  of  a  tiny  squirrel.  After 
the  clatter  on  the  tin  roof  of  the  veranda 
'  has  subsided,  the  rat-like  head  appears 
above  the  window-sill  on  which  the  pro- 
visions await  him.  There  he  pauses  a  mo- 
ment, one  little  paw  resting  for  support  on 
the  wood  work,  the  other  tightly  clasped 
against  his  fat,  furry  little  breast.  And  how 
eagerly  those  great,  soft  brown  eyes  inspect 
our  premises!  What  a  wonderful  amount 
of  speculation  with  regard  to  us  and  our 
ways  passes  through  the  active  little  brain! 
But  suddenly,  with  the  speed  of  ligiit- 
191 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

ning,  he  grasps  a  piece  of  cracked  nut,  and 
almost  simultaneously  he  is  on  his  haunches 
with  his  tail  whisked  over  his  back.  Then 
follows  the  rapid,  nervous  nibble,  nibble, 
nibble,  while  the  busy  forepaws  turn  and 
twist  the  nut  to  the  best  advantage,  and  the 
roving  eyes  scan  us.  When  the  meat  is 
eaten  the  shell  is  dropped  like  a  flash,  and 
the  forepaws  are  placed  tightly  against  the 
breast  as  in  a  muff.  Then  Rufus  drops  off 
into  one  of  those  remarkable  fits  of  contem- 
plation which  are  so  incompatible  with  his 
usual  indescribable  briskness  and  alertness. 
At  such  times  one  could  almost  imagine 
him  a  stuffed  specimen,  so  immovable  is  he, 
so  apparently  indifferent  to  everything  that 
is  going  on  around  him.  But  you  would 
reckon  without  your  host  if  you  were  to 
settle  down  in  the  expectation  of  an  oppor- 
tunity for  a  lengthy  and  comfortable  con- 
templation of  the  little  fellow;  for  as  sud- 
192 


A   DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

denly  as  he  dropped  into  the  contemplative 
mood,  just  so  suddenly  will  he  emerge  from 
it.  You  see  a  red  streak  among  the  trees, 
and  a  wake  of  waving  branches,  and — Ru- 
fus  is  gone! 

I  don't  know  what  kinds  of  husbands  and 
fathers  squirrels  make,  but  I  fancy  that 
there  are  among  them  as  many  varieties 
as  among  humans.  Sometimes  a  little  lady 
squirrel  accompanies  Rufus,  and  on  these 
occasions,  I  regret  to  say,  he  conducts  him- 
self in  a  most  unchivalrous  manner.  There 
are  such  vigorous  sparring  matches  that  the 
atmosphere  surrounding  the  combatants  is 
almost  tan  color;  tails  whisk  and  claws 
scratch,  while  a  vigorous  spitting  and  hiss- 
ing accompany  the  fight  for  food.  Rufus, 
brave  fellow,  generally  wins  the  day,  and 
the  lady  retreats  with  very  little  or  nothing 
gained.  Perhaps  the  Restaurant  of  the 
Window-sill  represents  the  sprightly  gen- 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

tleman's  club,  and  he  may  think  it  incom- 
patible with  feminine  dignity  for  Mrs. 
Rufus  to  attend.  At  any  rate  she  is  driven 
away  almost  as  soon  as  she  appears. 

"  There  he  is  with  his  little  mate,"  I  re- 
marked on  one  of  these  spicy  occasions 
when  they  met  at  the  Hotel  zwr  Fenster- 
briistung. 

"  That  can't  be  his  mate,"  said  an  un- 
sophisticated observer.  "  They  are  fight- 
ing! " 

"Did  you  never  hear  of  disputes  between 
married  people?  "  I  asked. 

At  first  we  put  out  for  the  Rufus  supply 
only  whole  nuts,  but  one  afternoon,  when 
three  pounds  disappeared  in  about  as  many 
quarters  of  an  hour,  we  concluded  that  our 
purses  could  not  stand  the  strain.  Entire 
nuts  suggested  secret  stores  to  the  active 
little  brain.  These  he  could  carry  off  and 
bury,  if  such  a  term  can  be  applied  to  plac- 
194 


A   DIGRESSOIN   ON   SQUIRRELS 

ing  objects  in  the  most  conspicuous  notches 
of  trees  and  in  other  equally  open  places. 

But  cracked  nuts  he  is  more  apt  to  de- 
vour on  the  spot,  although  even  a  portion 
of  these  he  sometimes  stores.  Realizing, 
however,  that  it  is  not  well  for  Rufus,  any 
more  than  for  the  rest  of  us,  to  have  things 
made  too  easy,  and  realizing  also  that  there 
is  safety  and  happiness  in  working  for  a  liv- 
ing, we  limit  his  supply  of  cracked  nuts  to 
half  a  dozen  a  day.  This  suffices  to  retain 
his  cupboard  friendship,  and  to  secure  his 
daily  visits,  and  does  not  interfere  with  the 
sawing  and  filing  of  whole  nuts,  so  bene- 
ficial to  him  from  dental  standpoints. 

During  the  pine-siskin,  junco  and  spar- 
row raids  an  extra  supply  of  cracked  nuts 
had  to  be  put  out  on  the  window-sill  and 
the  veranda-roof.  Even  then  Rufus  had 
hard  work  to  secure  a  share,  and  certainly 
no  opportunity  for  over-eating.  He  sulked 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

a  little  when  he  found  his  window-sill  pre- 
empted, and  several  times  he  was  obliged 
to  retire  and  to  wait  the  birds'  pleasure  be- 
fore getting  his  little  portion. 

There  are  numbers  of  birds'  nests  in  the 
trees  around  our  home,  and  some  are  built 
in  such  advantageous  positions  that,  from 
our  dining-room,  we  are  enabled  to  look  in 
upon  the  nestlings  while  the  parents  deal 
out  dainties  to  them. 

One  late  autumn  day  I  noticed  Mr. 
Rufus  skipping  along  among  the  bare 
branches  of  the  tree  nearest  the  dining- 
room.  Finally  he  halted  at  one  of  the  nests 
on  a  level  with  the  window-tops.  This  little 
bird-home  he  eagerly  investigated  with  the 
air  of  "  family  gone  south  for  the  winter!  I 
wonder  if  they  have  left  anything  behind." 
I  thought  nothing  more  of  the  incident  at 
the  time,  but  to  my  surprise  I  saw  him 

seated  in  the  nest  the  next  day.    A  portion 
196 


A  DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

of  his  back  was  visible;  his  head  appeared 
over  one  edge  and  his  long  tail  hung  down 
over  the  opposite  side.  It  was  one  of  his 
pensive  times  and  he  was  evidently  oblivi- 
ous to  the  intense  interest  two  sparrows 
were  taking  in  the  performance.  From 
time  to  time  they  literally  put  their  wonder- 
ing heads  together  as  they  chattered  their 
surprise,  and  every  now  and  then  they 
shortened  the  distance  between  themselves 
and  the  unnatural  combination  of  bird's 
nest  and  squirrel  until  at  last  they  were  at 
the  very  door  of  the  nest. 

When  Mr.  Rufus'  meditation  was  over, 
he  darted  from  his  resting-place  and  sped 
merrily  on  his  way  towards  the  grove;  and 
then  the  sparrows  were  able  to  gratify  their 
hardly  restrained  curiosity.  They  peered 
wonderingly  into  the  nest.  What  a  Santa- 
Claus  surprise  awaited  them! 

In  order  to  take  a  complete  inventory  of 
197 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

the  find  I  was  compelled  to  look  down  from 
a  second-story  window.  There  was  a  beau- 
tiful supply  of  nice  cracked  nuts  and  several 
quarters  of  juicy  apples.  How  eagerly  they 
fell  upon  the  spoil — occasionally  two  of  the 
plunderers  in  the  nest  at  the  same  time — 
and  how  thoroughly  they  emptied  the 
larder! 

Strange  as  it  may  seem,  Rufus  continued 
purveyor  to  the  sparrows  throughout  the 
entire  winter.  I  often  wonder  how  he  ac- 
counted for  the  disappearance  of  his  sup- 
plies. Perhaps  he  accuses  himself  of  hav- 
ing absent-mindedly  devoured  them,  or  he 
may  think  that  Mrs.  Rufus  profited  by 
them.  At  any  rate,  the  nest  was  well-pro- 
visioned several  times  a  week  and  just  as 
regularly  emptied  by  the  waiting  sparrows. 

I  have  spoken  to  several  lovers  of  nature 
of  the  amusement  we  derive  from  watching 
the  pranks  of  our  funny  little  red-coat,  and 
198 


A  DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

on  more  than  one  occasion  I  have  had  to 
listen  to  humiliating  charges  against  him. 

I  will  assemble  them  and  place  them  be- 
fore you  with  my  defence  for  the  criminal; 
and  I  shall  attempt  to  be  as  honest  (would 
that  I  could  be  as  eloquent!)  as  Daniel 
Webster  in  his  defence  of  the  woodchuck. 

The  gravest  of  the  charges  are  that  squir- 
rels steal  birds'  eggs  and  sometimes  eat 
young  birds,  and  that  they  kill  pine-  and 
cedar-trees  by  stripping  them  of  their 
cones. 

In  considering  these  accusations  calmly, 
I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  a  great 
law  of  nature  is  responsible  for  all  the 
depredations  Rufus  commits,  agreeing,  for 
the  sake  of  argument,  that  he  does  commit 
them. 

Like  every  other  living  thing,  he  has  to 
eat.  If  people  strip  the  trees  of  nuts  before 
he  has  an  opportunity  to  fill  his  little  larder, 
199 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

I  suppose  he,  also,  is  compelled  to  turn  rob- 
ber, and  to  make  a  raid  on  the  property  of 
some  other  creature.  Birds'  eggs  are  not 
despised  by  him,  but  I  am  ready  to  testify 
that  he  is  not  a  monopolist  in  this  respect. 
Visits  to  cabinets  of  amateur  collectors 
(we'll  say  nothing  of  museums)  have  con- 
vinced me  of  this  fact. 

As  to  his  eating  young  birds,  how  can  I 
deny  this  charge,  haunted  as  I  am  by  the 
remembrance  of  the  tragedy  in  the  ravine! 
Also,  there  comes  to  my  mind  the  testi- 
mony of  a  travelling  companion  of  mine 
who,  on  remonstrating  with  a  keeper  of  a 
public  park  for  his  wholesale  shooting  of 
squirrels,  was  informed  by  him  that  the 
squirrels  were  killing  all  the  birds  and  that 
he  was  only  obeying  official  orders  in  de- 
stroying them! 

Now,  strange  to  say,  all  these  delin- 
quents were  foreigners.  The  public  park 

200 


A  DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

where  the  furry  offenders  were  being  pun- 
ished for  their  fondness  for  game  was  the 
Berlin  Thiergarten,  while  the  carniverous 
red  squirrel  that  came  under  my  observa- 
tion was,  as  you  know,  a  Canadian,  a  sub- 
ject of  His  Gracious  Majesty.  I  have  been 
assured  by  those  who  have  made  a  study  of 
the  case  that  he  seldom  crosses  the  border, 
and  I  think  it  would  be  difficult  to  prove 
such  cannibalistic  charges  against  any  of 
the  red-coats  residing  in  our  neighborhood. 

The  grove  is  a  sufficient  refutation  of  the 
statement  that  it  is  impossible  to  have  both 
birds  and  squirrels.  In  season  it  is  alive 
with  songsters  and  gay  with  winter  birds; 
yet  throughout  the  entire  year,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  a  few  stormy  or  sleepy  days, 
squirrels  chatter  saucily  among  the  very 
trees  in  which  the  birds  are  hatched  and 
brought  up. 

Among  these  same  trees,  by  the  way,  are 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

hundreds  of  pines  and  cedars,  and  they  have 
prospered  for  many  long  years,  although 
Rufus  and  his  family  do  nibble  the  cones  to 
get  at  the  little  kernel  hidden  away  at  the 
base  of  each  scale. 

After  all,  why  should  the  little  fellows' 
appropriation  of  the  cones  be  more  disas- 
trous than  mine?  I  gather  them  for  my 
grate-fire  and  Rufus  likes  to  see  them  on 
his  bill  of  fare.  Neither  of  us  harms  the 
trees. 

Again,  to  make  a  concession  for  the  sake 
of  argument.  Let  us  suppose  that  pine- 
trees  are  injured  by  raids  on  their  cones.  It 
brings  me  back  to  the  original  statement 
that  the  necessity  for  eating  is  at  the  root 
of  the  whole  matter. 

In  order  to  remedy  the  evil  try  the  meth- 
ods so  successfully  employed  by  the  owners 
of  the  grove.  Give  Rufus  plenty  of  nuts 
and  bedding,  and  give  the  birds  supplies  for 

202 


A   DIGRESSION   ON   SQUIRRELS 

their  nests  and  helps  over  hard  places,  and 
you  will  have  both  birds  and  squirrels,  and 
your  cedar-  and  pine-trees  will  be  safe.  Let 
the  suggestion  have  a  fair  trial  and  see  if  I 
am  not  right. 

Squirrels  manifested  little  or  no  curiosity 
concerning  my  pets,  and  they  certainly 
never  molested  them.  In  fact  they  seemed 
more  inclined  to  avoid  than  to  seek  the 
birds'  society. 

203 


V 

MR.  CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAIN- 
MENTS 

In  connection  with  the  account  of  Mr. 
Chupes,  I  must  not  forget  to  make  particu- 
lar mention  of  his  musical  development. 
There  were  seasons  when  his  heart  was  so 
joyous  that  he  had  to  be  restrained  from 
singing  at  night  as  well  as  during  the  day. 
Sometimes  the  spirit  of  inspiration  would 
come  upon  him  during  spring  or  summer 
nights;  but  his  voice  has  also  been  heard  in 
autumn  moonlight  sonatas,  and  even  in 
mid-winter  nocturnes.  Owing,  however, 
to  the  prejudices  of  prosaic  people  who 
wanted  to  sleep,  these  performances  were 
generally  nipped  in  the  bud. 
204 


MR.  CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS 

Unlike  Sydney  Lanier's  "  Bob,"  Chupes 
did  not  sing  in  dreams.  Perhaps  it  was  be- 
cause he  practised  so  indefatigably  during 
all  waking  'hours  that  sleep  claimed  him 
completely  when  she  at  last  secured  him. 
Jenny  was  occasionally  the  victim  of  night- 
mares,— the  result  possibly  of  a  dread  of 
burglarious  attacks  on  her  nest,  or  of  indi- 
gestions, arising  from  the  non-assimila- 
tion of  strings  or  other  such  unnatural 
entrees, — but  if  external  evidence  may  be 
taken  as  testimony,  Chupes  was  a  dream- 
less sleeper. 

He  seemed  to  know  that  something  in 
the  nature  of  a  ban  had  been  laid  on  his 
nocturnal  singing,  yet  he  was  ever  testing 
us,  evidently  in  the  hope  of  our  having 
come  to  a  better  state  of  mind  with  regard 
to  evening  performances.  The  most  insin- 
uating of  notes  would  reach  me  from  his 
cage  as  I  tiptoed  around  my  room  in  the  de- 
205 


MR.  CHUPES    AND    MISS    JENNY 

sire  to  avoid  distrubing  those  who  had  re- 
tired earlier.  It  was  not  enough  that  these 
tentative  measures  received  no  encourage- 
ment from  me;  my  very  silence  was  often 
construed  into  permission  to  continue,  and 
the  gentle  notes  that  had  served  as  enter- 
ing wedges  were,  if  unrepressed,  merely  the 
forerunners  of  wild  outbursts  of  song. 

There  were  certain  tones  of  our  voices 
that  he  recognized  as  indications  of  disap- 
proval, and  on  all  but  the  rare  occasions 
when  he  had  the  delight  of  showing  off  for 
evening  guests,  I  had  to  steel  my  heart  to 
his  blandishments  and  make  use  of  these 
expostulations  in  order  to  bring  him  to  a 
realization  of  the  general  fitness  of  quiet  at 
night.  He  would  listen  with  an  air  of  be- 
nevolent and  tolerant  condescension, — al- 
most as  if  he  knew  that  I  objected  from  the 
standpoint  of  others  and  not  for  my  own 

sake, — and  he  generally  yielded  with  the 
206 


MR.  CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS 

appearance  of  making  a  magnanimous  con- 
cession. 

But  no  victory  crowned  my  morning  ef- 
forts to  subdue  him.  In  vain  I  darkened 
my  room  and  his  cage;  in  vain  I  expostu- 
lated with  him.  Through  all  the  gloom  in 
which  he  was  shrouded  the  little  fellow's 
heart  announced  to  him  the  approach  of 
day;  and  even  before  the  out-door  birds  had 
been  heard  from,  he  would  pour  out  his 
most  impassioned  ode  to  dawn. 

Beautiful  and  poetic  as  this  was,  it 
proved  very  trying  to  our  city  neighbors 
when,  for  a  time,  we  left  the  vicinity  of  the 
grove  and  went  nearer  town;  but  as  we  mi- 
grated early  and  generally  took  up  our 
quarters  in  haunts  remote  from  men,  we 
were  not  long  in  disfavor. 

I  have  frequently  been  accused  of  parti- 
ality in  keeping  back  the  account  of  Chupes' 
transgressions;  so  I  determine,  on  this  oc- 
207 


MR.  CHUPES    AND    MISS   JENNY 

casion,  to  make  a  clean  breast  of  the  mat- 
ter, and  to  tell  you  of  the  only  instance  in 
which  the  usually  highly  esteemed  and 
dearly  loved  little  gentleman  was  under  a 
cloud;  yet  I  think  you  will  agree  with  me 
that  my  little  musician  was  in  no  wise  to 
blame.  So  far  as  he  was  concerned,  it  was 
simply  a  case  of  misdirected  talent  and 
endeavor.  The  odium  should  rest  solely 
on  the  individual  who  conceived  the  idea 
of  developing  the  patriotic  side  of  the 
bird. 

"  Now,  Mr.  Chupes,  you  are  to  learn 
Yankee  Doodle/'  I  heard  this  disturber  of 
the  peace  say,  in  an  evil  hour,  to  my  apt,  at- 
tentive little  bird.  "  Listen  well  while  I 
whistle  it  for  you." 

But    instead     of    whistling    the    tune 

throughout,  the  musical  director,  thinking 

to  arrive  at  the  happiest  and  most  speedy 

results  through  the  reiteration  of  certain 

208 


ATTENTION,  MR.  CHUPES! 
209 


MR.CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS 


notes,  proceeded  in  the  following  unwise 
manner: 


Yank,       Yank,        Yank,     Yank,      Yank, 


m 


Yank,      Yan-  kee  Doo-dle,    Yan-kee  Doo-  die, 


Doo-dle, 'Doo-dle,  Doo-dle,  Doo-dle. 


Unfortunately,  the  monotonous  thing 
appealed  to  the  usually  correct  fancy  of  the 
bird.  He  listened  almost  anxiously,  with 
an  expression  of  "  Let  me  not  lose  one  of 
these  valuable  suggestions,"  and  at  the  end 
of  the  first  lesson  (which  was  also  the  last 
on  this  piece),  'he  repeated  all  the  Yanks 
and  all  the  Doodles  with  fatal  precision.  In- 
deed, so  charmed  was  he  with  his  new  acqui- 
sition that,  for  a  time,  he  dropped  his  own 

211 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

compositions  and  gave  up  improvising  in 
order  to  devote  himself  entirely  to  the  in- 
quisitorial bars;  racks  would  be  a  more  ap- 
propriate term. 

Those  were  dreary  days!  Everything  in 
life  went  to  the  tune  of  Yank,  Yank,  Yank, 
and  it  did  seem  as  if  the  dreadfully  persist- 
ent notes  would  never  be  unlearned;  for 
Chupes'  satisfaction  in  his  performance  in- 
creased instead  of  diminishing.  We  three, 
— the  teacher,  the  bird  and  I, — were  in  gen- 
eral disgrace  at  this  time;  the  charges 
against  us  respectively  being  instigation, 
response  and  ownership. 

Before  the  summer  set  in  one  member  of 
our  family  started  for  Europe,  and  our 
nearest  neighbor  left  for  the  wilds.  I  don't 
mean  to  intimate  that  Chupes  caused  the 
stampede, — for  summer  plans  had  been 
made  before  the  Yankee  Doodle  episode, — 
but  I  do  assert  that,  owing  to  the  painfully 

212 


MR.CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS 

noisy  circumstances,  the  pangs  of  separa- 
tion were  greatly  mitigated. 

This  is  the  year  in  which  Chupes  seems 
to  have  sowed  his  musical  wild  oats.  A 
little  later  in  this  same  summer  of  our  dis- 
content he  acquired  the  mournful  cry  of  a 
turkey  and  the  busy  "  cluck,  cluck  "  of  a 
hen;  but  both  they  and  the  Yankee  Doodle 
notes  disappeared  at  the  close  of  the  sea- 
son, when  he  again  took  his  stand  among 
the  sweetest  of  songsters. 

He  was  very  fond  of  certain  tunes,  and 
could  give  snatches  of  several.  At  the  time 
of  his  death  he  had  nearly  mastered  a  por- 
tion of  Sousa's  Directorate.  At  least  he  had 
his  own  version  of  it.  It  went  about  as  fol- 
lows: 

213 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 
Directorate 


With  what  relish  he  whistled  it,  and  how 
well  he  knew  what  his  teacher  meant  when, 
standing  before  him  with  raised  finger,  she 
would  say:  "Now,  Mr.  Chupes,  it's  time 
for  your  lesson.  Attention!  Begin!  " 

Then  off  they  would  start  together,  the 
bright  bird-eyes  eagerly  fixed  on  the  teach- 
er's face,  the  little  head  swaying  from  side 
to  side  as  the  finger  marked  the  measure, 
the  full  throat  rippling,  and  such  evident 
214 


MR.  CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS 

satisfaction  when,  at  the  end  of  the  lesson, 
he  received  the  hearty  congratulations  of 
his  admirers! 

This  piece  and  the  unfortunate  Yankee 
Doodle  strains  were  the  only  things  that 
Chupes  was  taught.  We  avoided  all  such 
training  as  the  teaching  of  tricks,  feel- 
ing that  the  best  opportunity  for  a  study 
of  their  originality  would  be  destroyed  by 
cultivating  unbirdlike  and  artificial  ways. 

To  refer  again  to  the  charming  story  of 
"  Bob," — the  lover-like  attentions  with 
Which  the  mocking-bird  honored  the  lady 
to  whom  he  was  particularly  devoted 
were  not  unlike  those  which  Chupes  be- 
stowed upon  his  dearest  human  friend.  On 
her  return,  even  after  a  short  absence,  he 
would  delightedly  raise  the  feathers  on  the 
top  of  his  head  until  he  had  the  appearance 
of  a  bird  with  a  very  high  crest. 

Many  and  many  a  time  he  has  strutted 
215 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

up  and  down  before  his  favorite  "  with  his 
hat  on/'  as  the  expression  went,  his  wings 
drooping,  his  tail  spread  and  dragging  like 
the  train  of  a  lady's  gown,  his  beak  open, 
and  his  yellow  tongue,  sometimes  also  part 
of  his  throat  visible,  while  during  the  entire 
parade  he  uttered  tender  trilling  little 
sounds  that  said  as  plainly  as  words  could 
have  done,  I  love  you! 

At  all  seasons,  with  the  exception  of  the 
moulting  period,  he  made  use  of  these  al- 
luring little  ways  to  tell  of  his  affection.  It 
was  a  genuine  heart-song  that  he  sang.  I 
sometimes  hear  its  counterpart  among  the 
robins  at  love-making  seasons,  but  only 
when  the  world  is  very  still;  for  the  song  is 
so  delicate  that  even  gently  rustling  leaves 
can  drown  it. 

Whenever  I  catch  a  glimpse  of  a  male 
robin  with  a  high  crest,  a  spread  and  droop^ 
ing  tail  and  gracefully  lowered  wings,  I 
216 


MR.CHUPES'  MUSICAL  ATTAINMENTS 


know  that  he  has  attired  himself  in  his  best 
clothes,  and  that  he  is  using  his  most  per- 
suasive eloquence  in  the  attempt  to  win 
the  little  lady  of  his  choice. 

One  of  the  motifs  in  which  Chupes  ap- 
peared to  take  unalloyed  delight,  a  theme 
on  which  he  played  endless  variations,  was 
interpreted  by  an  admiring  friend  as:  I  like 
it  here.  I  like  it  here;  like  it;  like  it;  like  it; 
like  it;  here,  here,  here,  here,  here;  and  so 
on  indefinitely;  the  "  like  "  being  always 
strongly  emphasized. 
I  Like  it  Here 


Portamento.  Port. 

I      like        it       here,     I     like        it    here, 


fort. 
I       like 


it     here,     I       like  it,      like 


it,      like          it,         here,       here,     here. 
217 


MR.  CHUPES  AND   MISS  JENNY 

This  expression  of  his  genuine  senti- 
ments he  reiterated  to  the  close  of  his  happy 
little  life. 

Jenny's  usual  notes  were  the  busy,  fussy, 
guerulous,  imperious  ones,  used  by  the  or- 
thodox female  robin  in  addressing  her  mate. 
Occasionally  she  made  a  leathery  (I  find  no 
other  word  to  express  the  dull,  creaking 
sound)  departure  from  conversational  tones, 
which  I  concluded  was  an  attempt  at  im- 
provisation— a  failure  from  the  standpoint 
of  a  musician,  but  evidently  highly  satis- 
factory to  the  performer.  But  in  spite  of 
the  fact  that  her  notes  were,  as  a  rule,  harsh 
and  unmusical  to  a  degree,  I  have  heard 
this  dear  little  bird  twitter  and  coo  in  the 
gentlest,  sweetest  manner  as  she  prepared 
her  impossible  nest  for  the  reception  of  the 
ardently  longed-for  nestlings. 
218 


VI 

THE  SONG  DIES  AWAY 

And  now  I  approach  the  end,  for  I  come 
to  the  last  year  in  the  life  of  my  dear  little 
friends.  I  have  told  you  of  the  summer  of 
Chupes'  babyhood;  of  the  summer  spent  at 
the  Canadian  lake-side,  of  one  passed  in  the 
St.  Francis  valley  region,  and  I  have  made 
mention  of  another  in  the  Catskills.  I  will 
merely  touch  upon  the  fifth — spent  at 
home;  a  pleasant  one,  marked  by  no  un- 
usual incident  and  at  the  beginning  and  end 
of  which  the  birds  manifested  no  desire  for 
migrating,  although  they  were  deprived  of 
their  customary  trips. 

I  have  also  spoken  of  our  winters;  four  of 
219 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

which  were  spent  in  the  New  Jersey  home; 
but  at  the  close  of  the  fifth  summer  we  re- 
versed the  usual  order  of  procedure,  and  on 
a  beautiful,  clear,  Thanksgiving-day  eve, 
started  for  the  North.  It  was  evidently  all 
one  to  the  birds  which  direction  we  took, 
so  long  as  we  were  together.  Separation 
was  the  evil  of  evils  to  them. 

You  know  the  terrible  rush  and  crush  of 
festival  occasions  at  such  great  centres  as 
the  Forty-second  street  station  in  New 
York,  and  you  can  easily  picture  to  your- 
selves what  an  anxious  time  I  had  getting 
my  charges  through  the  crowd,  but  at  last 
it  was  all  over  and  we  were  safely  installed 
in  our  sleeping-car  and  steaming  away  tow- 
ards a  third  Canadian  destination.  Again 
the  St.  Francis  valley  region,  but  this  time 
near  a  village  at  a  distance  of  several  miles 
•from  the  ravine. 

The  journey  was  accomplished  with  little 

220 


THE   SONG   DIES   AWAY 

inconvenience  and  no  alarm;  but  good, 
warm  shawls  were  placed  over  the  paper 
wrapping  around  the  cages  when  we 
emerged  from  the  cars  on  the  occasion  of 
this,  my  last  trip  with  the  dear  little  friends; 
for  we  had  come  upon  keen,  frosty  air  and 
snow,  and  any  exposure  would  have  been 
fatal  to  the  tenderly  reared  little  creatures. 
As  usual,  they  made  themselves  at  home 
in  their  new  surroundings  and  were  thor- 
oughly happy  after  a  time,  but  I  think  they 
were  at  first  depressed  to  find  so  much  cut 
off  from  each  end  of  their  day.  Of  course 
the  difference  in  latitude  caused  a  very  per- 
ceptible shortening  of  the  daylight  hours, 
displeasing  to  Jenny,  as  it  interfered  with 
her  work,  and  not  at  all  satisfactory  to  the 
sun-  and  light-loving  Mr.  Chupes.  The  dis- 
approbation soon  gave  way  to  approval, 
however,  when  they  learned  that  sunset 
and  deepening  twilight  hours  were  to 

221 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

be  spent  in  cosy  snuggling  on  my  shoul- 
ders. 

My  room  commanded  a  view  of  the  river, 
of  wide  meadow  stretches  and  of  a  back- 
ground of  hills,  behind  one  of  which  the 
mid-winter  sun  sets.  It  was  ever  a  joy  to 
me  to  watch  the  variations  of  the  glowing 
colors  that,  for  one  brief  interval,  made  of 
every  bare,  desolate  tree  on  the  hill-top  a 
glorious  burning  bush:  a  bearer  of  an  awe- 
inspiring  message! 

To  the  little  nature-lovers  on  my  shoul- 
ders the  solemn  influences  of  the  hour  must 
have  appealed  keenly.  Their  innocent 
hearts  were  ever  in  tune.  The  beings  of 
what  we  are  pleased  to  term  "  the  lower 
creation/'  have  ears  to  hear  much  from 
which  our  worldliness  and  dulness  cut  us 
off. 

Yet  many  a  weary  wood-hauler  found 
time  to  stop  and  gaze  at  the  transfigured 

222 


THE   SONG   DIES   AWAY 

mount,  and  even  light-hearted,  thoughtless 
little  urchins,  tumbling  each  other  along 
through  the  snow-drifts,  would  occasion- 
ally pay  to  the  resplendent,  dying  orb  the 
tribute  of  a  gar9  done,  and  an  indication  with 
a  mittened  hand. 

"  '  Not  color  but  conflagration/  "  I  was 
saying  to  myself  on  one  of  these  glowing 
occasions;  and  almost  at  the  same  moment, 
along  the  clear,  frosty  air,  came  to  me  the 
exclamation  of  a  little  peasant  lad  who  had 
been  brought  to  a  standstill  ,by  the  wonder- 
ful sight:  "On  dirait  que  c'est  du  feu!" 
Another  rendering  of  Ruskin's  thought. 

Often  the  birds  watched  with  me  as  the 
moon  rose  over  the  great  glistening  ex- 
panses, the  wonderful  brilliant  whiteness 
seeming  almost  like  a  return  of  day.  Again 
we  held  starlight  vigils,  and  never  before 
had  I  seen  night  skies  of  so  clear  a  blue  or 
stars  of  such  marvelous  brightness.  And 
223 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

the  nights  when  the  aurora  borealis  gave  a 
red  glow  to  the  entire  northern  sky!  How 
can  I  attempt  to  tell  you  of  them? 

Sometimes  the  unmistakable  crunching 
and  squeaking  of  runners  as  the  jingling 
sleighs  flew  over  the  crisp,  tightly-packed 
snow,  testified  to  the  intensity  of  the  cold, 
and  the  occasional  pistol-like  reports  that 
announced  the  springing  of  nails  in  the 
roof,  corroborated  the  testimony  of  the 
runners  and  the  snow.  There  were  times 
when  the  maddest  of  winter  sprites  seemed 
let  loose  upon  us.  Blinding  snows  fell  and 
wild  winds  howled  as  they  piled  the  gigan- 
tic drifts  around  us;  and  down, 'down,  down, 
went  the  mercury,  till  the  thermometer 
sometimes  registered  thirty  or  thirty-five 
below  zero-.  But  above  the  wildest  storms 
rose  the  sweet  song  of  my  little  bird  with 
perpetual  summer  in  his  heart;  and  neither 
cold,  nor  frost,  nor  tempests,  interfered 
224 


THE   SONG   DIES   AWAY 

with  Jenny's  diligent  housekeeping.  What 
could  these  warm,  comfortable,  happy  little 
creatures  know  of  the  fierce,  bleak  outer 
world? 

I  think  they  had  almost  forgotten  the  ex- 
istence of  other  birds,  when  one  day  their 
attention  was  attracted  by  some  feathered 
creatures,  a  little  smaller  than  themselves, 
fluttering  and  chattering  around  a  few  des- 
olate-looking stalks  in  the  field  opposite. 
They  were  snow-buntings;  grayish-brown 
upper  markings  with  occasional  black 
streaks  set  off  the  plump,  brown  and  white 
breasts;  and  a  reddish-brown  collar  sug- 
gested sore-throat  precautions.  How  these 
merry  little  creatures  played  and  rollicked 
in  the  snow!  It  is  said  that  they  sometimes 
sleep  under  it.  Think  of  using  that  cold, 
white  mantle  for  a  blanket!  How  they 
joyed  in  the  wild  storms  and  the  biting  cold, 
the  first  breath  of  which  would  have  been 
225 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

death  to  Chupes  and  Jenny,  yet  which,  to 
these  visitors  from  Arctic  regions,  was 
probably  like  the  balmy  summer  days  of  the 
grove  to  my  pets.  It  was  hard  to  realize 
that  they  were  all  of  the  same  order  of  be- 
ings! 

The  snow-buntings  came  several  times, 
attracted  by  tfhe  seeds  in  the  field,  and 
Chupes  and  Jenny  never  lost  an  opportu- 
nity of  watching  them;  but  after  a  while, 
when  the  supply  of  food  gave  out,  they  de- 
serted our  neighborhood.  I  tried  to  keep 
them  by  scattering  seeds  around  the  house, 
but  the  wind  tossed  my  contributions  far 
away  and  I  soon  gave  up  the  attempt. 

These  were  the  only  feathered  creatures 
that  my  birds  saw  during  the  entire  win- 
ter. There  were  hosts  of  sparrows  in  the 
neighborhood,  but  they  preferred  the  com- 
paratively thickly  peopled  village  to  the 
bleak,  exposed,  though  beautiful,  quarter 

where  we  lived. 

226 


THE   SONG   DIES   AWAY 

But  my  birds  had  human  friends  and  ad- 
mirers without  number.  I  was  generally 
known  as  the  lady  who  owned  the  birds, 
and  was  worthy  of  consideration  and  es- 
teem chiefly  on  account  of  my  office  as  cus- 
todian of  the  little  southerners.  Jenny 
gained  great  favor  through  her  housewifely 
ways  and  her  willingness  to  perch  on  the 
hands  of  visitors,  but  Chupes  was  gener- 
ally best  loved;  and  his  beautiful  songs  and 
funny  pranks  excited  no  end  of  admiration 
and  wonder. 

At  last  the  long  cold  winter  came  to  an 
end,  and  it  was  just  as  I  had  made  up  my 
mind  that  out-door  pleasures  and  spring 
delights  would  soon  be  ours  that  the  first 
little  life  closed. 

Before  entering  upon  any  of  the  particu- 
lars, I  want  to  tell  you  that  I  had  dreaded 
for  these  tenderly  watched,  happy  little 
creatures  a  forlorn  old  age,  or  some  such 
227 


MR.  CHUPES    AND    MISS    JENNY 

tragic  ending  as  would  call  for  a  heart- 
rending obituary  like  poor  "  Bob's  " — 
"Died  of  a  catf  and  I  am  anxious  you 
should  feel  as  I  do  that,  sad  as  it  was  to  lose 
these  dear,  true-hearted  little  friends,  the 
end  came  in  a  merciful  manner  and  at  a 
merciful  time.  A  five  years'  stretch  of  al- 
most uninterrupted  happiness  constitutes  a 
beautiful  bird-life.  And  it  was  within  a  few 
weeks  of  five  years  after  Mr.  Chupes'  com- 
ing to  me  that  the  loving  little  heart  ceased 
to  beat.  We  laid  him  away  in  the  sod  of 
this  northern  haunt  where  he  had  carried 
summer  brightness,  and  about  a  month 
later  we  buried  his  faithful  little  lover, 
Jenny,  beside  him. 

It  is  impossible  for  me  to  speak  without 
emotion  of  the  last  days  of  these  truest  of 
little  friends.  Chupes'  affection  for  me, 
great  as  it  was  at  the  outset,  had  gone  on 
increasing  with  years.  My  absence  even 


THE    SONG   DIES    AWAY 

during  half  a  day  was  enough  to  still  the 
happy  song  and  make  the  little  fellow 
mope  sadly.  What  a  pitiful  fate  would  have 
been  his  if  circumstances  had  separated  us 
permanently! 

Jenny  was  very  affectionate  also,  and  she, 
too,  felt  my  absence  keenly;  but  the  animal 
nature  was  stronger  in  her  than  in  Chupes, 
and  in  every  sorrow  but  one,  food  mitigated 
tier  grief.  It  was  when  Chupes  died  that 
she  refused  to  eat  or  drink. 

We  had  always  known  that  she  loved 
him,  for  she  would  fret  and  call  unceasingly 
when  he  was  out  of  sight;  yet  she  scolded 
him  constantly,  and,  as  I  have  already  told 
you,  she  fought  him  if  he  attempted  to 
come  near  her  food,  and  sometimes  re- 
sented his  helping  himself  to  his  own  por- 
tion. 

I  have  mentioned  that  the  dear  little  fel- 
low was  only  too  ready  to  respond  to  a  call 
229 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

for  song,  and  that  the  great  difficulty  lay 
in  restraining  him.  It  seemed  at  times  as 
if  his  throat  would  burst  as  it  poured  forth 
the  rapturous  notes.  Indeed,  from  all  I  can 
learn,  his  constant  singing  was  the  cause  of 
his  death.  I  have  consulted  several  bird- 
tanciers,  and  from  them  I  learned  that  it  is 
possible  for  birds  to  induce  a  paralysis  of 
the  throat  by  excessive  singing.  Two  days 
before  Chupes  died  the  song  suddenly 
stopped,  and  it  soon  became  evident  that 
his  throat  was  affected. 

He  was  hungry,  poor  little  fellow,  and  he 
tried  his  best  to  eat,  but  'he  could  not  swal- 
low. The  delicate  little  instrument  was 
worn  out  and  refused  to  work.  He  was  ex- 
actly like  a  sick  child,  and  insisted  on  being 
held  by  the  one  to  whom  he  had  given  all 
the  love  of  his  warm  little  heart.  His  suf- 
ferings were  not  severe,  I  am  glad  to  say, 
and  until  the  dim  eyes  closed  his  glance 
230 


THE   SONG   DIES   AWAY 

sought  my  face  with  a  look  of  deepest  love. 
It  was  almost  as  if  he  said:  "  Dearest  one, 
you  are  a  great  comfort  to  me!  " 

He  tried  to  sing  and  even  to  play,  but  all 
in  vain.  An  hour  or  so  before  he  died  he 
gave  a  faint,  pathetic  little  response  to  the 
jingling  of  a  pair  of  buckles;  but  the  rest- 
ing-time  had  come,  and,  with  my  hands 
surrounding  him, — the  favorite  attitude  of 
his  helpless  babyhood, — he  died. 

Died  of  happiness,  I  suppose  I  may  say, 
and  I  could  not  have  asked  a  better  fate  for 
the  sweet  little  pet  who  had  brought  sun- 
shine and  happiness  into  so  many  lives. 

I  see  him  now  as  he  perched  one  winter 
day  beside  a  worn-out  artist  who  had  come 
to  us  to  rest.  The  bird  was  singing  one  of 
his  sweetest,  most  plaintive,  songs  when 
one  of  us  spoke. 

"  Oh,  please  don't,"  said  the  weary 
woman.  "  Let  m,e  listen  to  that  wonderful 
231 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS    JENNY 

song.  It  takes  me  into  the  'heart  of  the 
cool  green  forest.  I  hear  the  rustling  of 
leaves  and  the  purling  of  brooks,  and  I  feel 
the  soft  summer  breezes.  Let  me  close  my 
eyes  and  listen  only  to  him!  " 

When  the  news  went  out  that  the  little 
voice  was  silenced  there  was  such  mourn- 
ing! I  am  not  ashamed  to  say  that  for 
weeks  I  could  not  speak  of  him  without 
tears,  but  I  was  surprised  and  touched  to 
find  how  many  eyes  besides  my  own  grew 
moist  at  the  news  of  the  little  friend's  death. 

Many  letters  were  written  to  invalids 
about  these  wonderful  birds,  and  the  story 
passed  from  one  "  Shut-in "  to  another, 
carrying  brightness  as  it  went.  The  ac- 
count of  Jenny's  funny  fancies  always 
caused  amusement,  but  what  remained 
longest  in  every  one's  memory  was  the  echo 
of  Chupes'  sweet  song. 
232 


VII 
POOR  MISS  JENNY'S  HEART 

And  Jenny,  poor,  despairing  little  Jenny! 
No  one  suspected  the  depth  of  feeling  of 
which  she  was  capable  until  Chupes  died. 
She  called  unceasingly  for  him,  and  thinking 
it  might  convey  some  idea  of  the  hopeless- 
ness of  the  cry  if  we  let  her  see  him,  we 
placed  the  limp  little  body  on  the  table  be- 
side her.  She  gazed  at  him  fully  two  min- 
utes without  stirring,  then  she  rushed 
wildly  about  the  room,  dashing  herself 
against  walls  and  windows  as  if  attempting 
to  beat  her  brains  out.  The  neighbors, 
even  at  a  distance,  heard  her  pitiful  wails, 
and  it  was  a  problem  with  us  all  what  was 
233 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

to  be  done  with  the  broken-hearted  bird. 
How  earnestly  I  wished  she  might  die ! 

It  made  no  difference  to  her  when  we 
took  her  dead  playmate  away.  She  knew 
that  the  quiet  form  was  not  really  he.  In 
vain  were  her  favorite  dishes  placed  before 
her;  she  would  not  eat.  As  for  the  nest, 
the  building  of  which  had  been  her  chief 
aim  in  life,  she  no  longer  gave  it  a  thought. 
I  have  never  seen  a  wilder,  more  hopeless 
sorrow. 

When  night  came  she  slept  from  sheer 
exhaustion,  but  with  the  first  faint  streaks 
of  dawn  (and  during  summer  months  day 
begins  very  early  in  that  far  northern  lati- 
tude), the  pitiful  wailing  and  the  wild  fly- 
ing started  anew.  It  was  more  than  I  could 
endure.  I  dressed  hastily  and  carried  her 
out  to  a  near  hillside,  hoping  to  change  the 
current  of  her  thoughts  by  out-door  sights. 
At  first  she  looked  around  in  a  dazed  sort  of 
234 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S   HEART 

manner,  but  suddenly  she  gave  a  wild 
scream — a  scream  of  recognition  it  seemed 
to  me — and  then  she  flew  away  in  answer  to 
a  male  robin's  call. 

Something  peculiar  about  the  bird's  note 
enabled  me  to  identify  him.  He  had 
haunted  the  house  for  two  days.  As  I  held 
my  little  invalid  bird  in  the  sunshine  during 
his  last  hours,  this  stranger  had  appeared 
at  the  dining-room  window,  and  Jenny, 
ever  on  the  alert,  had  bristled  up  to  him  and 
frightened  him  away.  But  how  she  wel- 
comed him  now!  What  a  transfigured  bird 
she  was!  I  am  certain  that  for  a  moment 
she  thought  it  was  her  beloved  Chupes  back 
again;  but  of  course  the  delusion  could  not 
last.  She  soon  recognized  the  fact  that  it  was 
a  stranger;  but  he  was  wooing  her.  He  was 
not  distant  and  absorbed'in  song.  He  would 
even  be  willing  to  take  an  interest  in 
the  nest  and  perhaps  to  help  in  its  construc- 
ts 


MR.  CHUPES    AND    MISS    JENNY 

tion.  She  was  now  as  wildly  happy  as  she 
had  previously  been  miserable.  I  watched 
her  flying  from  tree  to  tree  with  'her  little 
mate,  and  I  made  up  my  mind  that  she 
would  never  return  to  me.  I  hoped  he 
would  teach  her  all  the 'secrets  of  self-pres- 
ervation so  well  known  to  wild  birds,  and 
that  when  the  summer  was  over,  he  would 
lead  her  to  a  southern  home. 

But  even  as  I  speculated,  back  came 
Jenny.  She  alighted  on  my  shoulder  and 
gave  my  lips  the  peremptory  peck  she  was 
in  the  habit  of  administering  whenever  she 
suspected  that  I  was  eating.  I  gave  her 
some  of  my  early  breakfast — a  bit  of 
cracker — and  she  flew  away  to  'her  mate. 
It  was  evident,  however,  that  she  preferred 
walking  to  flying,  as  she  soon  alighted  on 
the  ground.  He  wisely  accommodated 
himself  to  circumstances  and  walked  along 
beside  her.  I  followed  at  a  respectful  dis- 
236 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S    HEART 

tance,  but  as  the  wild  bird's  distrust  of  me 
decreased,  I  gradually  shortened  the  space 
between  us. 

In  this  way  I  was  enabled  to  make  a  dis- 
covery that  accounted  for  his  peculiar  note, 
and  perhaps  also  for  his  bachelorhood  at  a 
season  when  all  robinkind  had  established 
itself  in  families.  He  would  sing  a  few 
notes,  and  cough;  no  ordinary  bird-sneeze, 
but  a  hard,  rasping  cough.  I  felt  that  I  had 
the  key  to  the  situation.  He  was  a  con- 
sumptive. An  undesirable  suitor  under  or- 
dinary circumstances,  but  here  was  a  wife 
with  a  dowry,  and  it  would  not  be  necessary 
for  him  to  work  for  her  support. 

It  was  all  very  satisfactory  to  the  birds, 
no  doubt,  and  certainly  most  romantic;  but 
Jenny  would  starve  without  me,  and  I  could 
not  spend  my  life  as  her  travelling  maid;  so, 
when  she  came  to  me  again,  I  put  her  in  her 
cage  and  carried  her  to  the  house;  the  wild 
237 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

bird  accompanied  her  as  far  as  the  door. 
She  seemed  to  understand  that  she  was  to 
see  him  again.  At  any  rate  she  made  no 
resistance,  and,  once  in  our  room,  she  suc- 
cumbed to  the  reaction  from  so  much  emo- 
tion and  took  a  good  nap. 

A  telephone-wire  entered  the  house  near 
one  of  my  windows.  Shortly  after  our  re- 
turn, a  peculiar  sound  as  of  vibrating  metal 
caused  me  to  look  out.  There  was  Jenny's 
mate  perched  on  the  wire  near  the  win- 
dow; there  was  no  mistaking  the  cough 
and  the  peculiar  break  in  the  song.  He 
had  located  our  room! 

She  awoke  at  the  sound  of  his  voice,  and, 
as  soon  as  she  recognized  him,  she  .began 
scolding  roundly.  It  was  only  coquetry, 
but  he  did  not  understand  it,  and  he  flew 
away  in  dismay.  I  placed  a  mosquito-net- 
ting at  the  window  to  keep  her  from  follow- 
ing. She  began  to  call  pitifully  for  him. 
238 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S   HEART 

Jingle  went  the  wire  and  back  came  the  for- 
giving mate.  I  carefully  drew  aside  the 
mosquito-netting  and  withdrew  to  a  remote 
corner  of  the  room.  He  came  to  the  win- 
dow-sill and  looked  in.  In  an  instant  Jenny 
flew  eagerly  to  her  work  as  if  to  show  him 
what  a  domestic  treasure  he  had  found. 
Papers,  rags,  sticks,  straws — the  whole  het- 
erogeneous mass  was  stirred  up,  rear- 
ranged, and  added  to,  while  the  wild  bird 
looked  on  in  amazement.  Never  before 
had  he  beheld  such  a  nest.  After  a  short 
time  he  flew  away,  soon  to  return  with  a 
fine  fat  grub  for  his  industrious  little  wife. 
Jenny  seized  it  eagerly  and  instantly  carried 
it  to  the  nest,  where  she  scratched  and 
clawed  and  mashed  it  into  position  among 
her  building  materials. 

I  made  the  experiment  of  putting  some 
of  her  mocking-bird  food  on  the  window- 
sill  for  the  little  mate.     He  eyed  it  sus- 
239 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

piciously  at  first,  but  finally  ate  it  with  rel- 
ish; and  after  this  he  always  looked  for  a 
portion  in  exchange  for  the  worm  or  grub 
presented  to  Jenny. 

The  manner  in  which  we  used  to  watch 
the  weather  with  an  eye  to  its  effects  on 
Jenny's  mate  was  really  laughable.  "  Bad 
for  delicate  throats,"  we  would  remark  on 
cold,  damp  days,  while  warmth  and  sun- 
shine were  hailed  with  delight.  But  dur- 
ing the  daylight  hours  of  all  weather  the 
little  fellow  perched  faithfully  on  his  tele- 
phone-post when  Jenny  could  not  be  out  of 
doors. 

At  the  end  of  a  fortnight  his  cold  had  en- 
tirely disappeared,  and  I  shall  always  at- 
tribute the  cure  to  the  good  strengthening 
diet  of  mocking-bird  food. 

Only  on  one  occasion  did  he  really  enter 
my  room.  Jenny  was  in  her  cage  for  safety, 
as  the  furniture  was  being  moved.  She 
240 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S   HEART 

called  to  him  appealingly  and  be  braved  us 
all.  With  a  force  sufficient  to  bruise  his 
tender  little  body  he  threw  himself  against 
the  wires  in  a  violent  effort  to  liberate  her. 
I  opened  the  door  of  the  cage  and  let  them 
fly  off  together,  but,  as  usual,  I  had  to  ac- 
company them  to  the  best  of  my  walking 
abilities. 

And  so  the  days  passed  in  strolls  in  the 
fields,  flights  among  the  trees,  nest-build- 
ing, exchange  of  food,  and  in  general  hap- 
piness for  the  strange  little  couple.  I  used 
to  wonder  anxiously  how  it  would  all  end. 

Jenny  could  not  take  care  of  herself;  I 
had  proved  it  again  and  again;  but  I  had  a 
new  demonstration  of  the  fact  o-ne  day 
when  we  three  went  sauntering  through 
the  fields  looking  for  such  "  delicatessen  " 
as  birds  relish.  Suddenly  the  wild  mate 
gave  a  warning  cry  and  flew  away,  evi- 
dently expecting  Jenny  to  follow  him.  She, 
241 


MR.  CHUPES   AND    MISS    JENNY 

however,  went  unconcernedly  on  with  her 
search  for  dainties,  and  had  not  a  meouw  of 
delighted  anticipation  given,  me  an  intima- 
tion of  danger,  she  would  certainly  have 
fallen  into  the  jaws  of  a  cat. 

I  allowed  her  to  remain  out  as  late  as 
possible  on  fine  days,  yet  I  took  great  care 
to  have  her  safely  housed  before  the  even- 
ing shadows  fell.  Once,  however,  I  became 
so  engrossed  in  watching  the  happy  crea- 
tures, that,  before  I  realized  it,  the  dusk  had 
nearly  overtaken  us.  I  called  Jenny,  but 
she  refused  to  come.  Her  mate  was  coax- 
ing her  to  go  with  him,  and  she  went. 

It  was  not  too  dark  to  distinguish  the  lit- 
tle figures,  and  I  soon  traced  them  to  a 
large  maple.  While  I  stood  anxiously  look- 
ing up  into  the  branches,  a  kind  neighbor 
appeared  on  the  scene. 

"  Can  I  do  anything  for  you?  "  he  asked. 

"  No,  thank  you/'  I  answered.  "  My  lit- 
242 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S   HEART 

tie  Jenny  has  made  up  her  mind  to  remain 
out  all  night,  and  I  may  as  well  abandon  all 
hope  of  catching  her." 

"  I  think  I  can  get  her,"  said  the  neigh- 
bor, swinging  himself  up  in  the  tree;  when, 
lo!  just  as  he  was  ready  to  grasp  her,  the  lit- 
tle rogue  flew  to  another  maple,  leaving  her 
would-be  captor  high  up  among  the 
branches. 

I  followed  her  to  another  halting-place, 
and  in  a  moment  or  so  received  an  offer  of 
assistance  from  a  second  neighbor.  This  I 
refused  tp  accept,  however,  pointing  to  the 
friend  in  the  tree  as  an  illustration  of  the 
hopelessness  of  the  attempt. 

As  I  followed  my  little  runaway,  several 
barefooted  urchins  joined  me,  armed  with 
poles  and  rakes;  each  one  certain  that  he 
could  catch  Jenny,  each  in  turn  to  be 
stranded  in  a  tree  while  she  flew  trium- 
phantly away.  People  in  carts  and  in  car- 
243 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

riages,  on  bicycles  and  on  foot,  swelled  the 
upward-gazing  throng,  and,  until  it  became 
so  dark  and  chilly  that  we  were  driven 
away,  the  whole  neighborhood  watched  for 
the  fugitive. 

What  a  cold  night  that  was!  The  mois- 
ture condensing  on  the  window-panes  re- 
minded us  of  late  autumn,  and  we  were  cer- 
tain that  the  little  bird  would  take  her 
death.  There  was  nothing  to  do  but  wait 
for  the  daylight,  however. 

At  about  three  in  the  morning  I  started 
out,  but  a  dense  fog  drove  me  back.  I 
could  not  even  see  my  way  across  the 
street,  and  the  mist  had  fallen  so  heavily 
that  the  grass  looked  as  if  the  meadows  had 
recently  been  the  bed  of  a  vast  brook. 

At  five  I  made  a  second  attempt  to  go 

out.    The  fog  was  lifting  a  little,  and  I  was 

well  protected  by  my  winter  coat.    I  made 

my  way  at  once  towards  the  robin  settle- 

244 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S   HEART 

ment,  for  that  was  where  I  had  last  seen 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jenny.  As  I  proceeded,  the 
atmosphere  continued  to  clear,  but  long 
before  I  was  near  enough  to  distinguish  the 
birds  I  heard  a  terrible  commotion  among 
them. 

"  The  wild  robins  are  probably  killing 
Jenny,"  I  thought,  and  I  hastened  to  her 
rescue. 

What  a  sight  met  my  gaze  when  I  came 
to  the  scene  of  action! 

Among  the  outer  feathers  of  Jenny's  tail 
was  one  completely  white.  Under  stress  of 
provocation  she  would  spread  her  tail  to  its 
widest  extent,  and  then  of  course  the  white 
feather  was  visible  in  all  its  length.  This 
made  it  easy  for  me  to  identify  her  on  the 
occasion  in  question,  for  there  she  was  with 
outspread  tail  and  flaunting  white  feather, 
visiting  nest  after  nest,  chattering  angrily, 
fighting,  and  endeavoring  to  dislodge  every 
245 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

mother  bird  in  the  community.  I  was  sur- 
prised at  the  slight  show  of  resistance  on 
the  part  of  her  victims,  but  probably  they 
were  too  dazed  to  retaliate.  The  mate, 
perched  at  a  little  distance  from  the  battle- 
ground, looked  on  with  evident  dismay. 

When  the  little  termagant  saw  me,  she 
made  some  parting  remarks  which  sounded 
even  more  derisive  than  the  previous  ones 
and  flew  to  my  outstretched  hand.  I  car- 
ried her  home,  the  wild  mate  accompany- 
ing us  to  the  door,  and  I  fancied  he  looked 
relieved  when  I  assumed  the  entire  respon- 
sibility of  his  energetic  charge.  Jenny 
tumbled  into  her  nest  as  soon  as  she  had 
eaten  a  hearty  breakfast,  and  then  the  day 
was  given  up  to  napping.  The  mate  came 
occasionally,  but  she  was  too  sleepy  to  re- 
ceive him  enthusiastically.  After  this  oc- 
currence I  clipped  the  longest  feathers  of 
one  of  her  wings  to  restrain  her  some- 
246 


POOR   MISS  JENNY'S   HEART 

what.  Neither  her  wings  nor  Chupes'  had' 
been  interfered  with  since  last  moulting 
time. 

It  was  between  the  second  and  third 
week  of  Jenny's  acquaintance  with  the  wild 
bird  that  the  runaway  took  place.  She  was 
not  hurt  in  the  least  by  the  exposure,  and 
after  she  had  rested  well  she  picked  up  the 
thread  of  her  daily  life  as  if  nothing  unusual 
had  happened.  I  suppose  her  existence  was 
simply  blissful  during  all  this  period,  and 
the  mate  was  certainly  very  happy  also;  but 
I  was  far  from  satisfied.  In  a  few  days  I 
was  to  leave  for  a  remote  city,  there  to  take 
up  hotel  life  for  a  time,  and  what  was  to 
become  of  Jenny?  A  separation  would,  no 
doubt,  pain  the  wild  bird,  but  a  few  days 
would  probably  be  the  limit  of  his  sorrow. 
As  for  little  Jenny,  I  knew  that  to  take  her 
away  from  her  mate  would  be  to  plunge  her 
again  in  the  deepest  despair. 
247 


MR.  CHUPES   AND   MISS   JENNY 

I  could  not  leave  her,  for  no  one  else 
knew  how  to  guard  the  helpless  creature. 
Supposing  even  that  I  remained  until  the 
autumn;  the  wild  bird  would  then  take  his 
departure  and  leave  her  to  fret  her  life  out. 
The  plan  of  capturing  and  taming  him  was 
suggested  to  me,  but  I  never  entertained 
it  for  a  moment.  Only  as  a  matter  of  res- 
cue would  I  take  a  bird  in,  and  never  would 
I  deprive  one  of  its  freedom. 

It  was  a  problem;  but  Nature  solved  it  in 
its  own  kindly  way.  Just  two  nights  before 
I  left  little  Jenny  died,  evidently  quite  pain- 
lessly; for  when  I  left  my  room  she  was 
sleeping  quietly,  and  a  few  moments  later 
we  found  her  dead.  The  little  creature  had 
toiled  her  hardest  at  the  nest  all  that  day; 
chatting  with  the  wild  mate  during  his 
visits,  but  evidently  preferring  work  to  any 
outing;  she  actually  wore  her  little  feet  sore 
with  the  scratching  and  shaping. 
248 


POOR   MISS   JENNY'S   HEART 

The  whole  pathos  of  the  situation  came 
over  me  as  I  took  down  the  strange  accu- 
mulation that  s'he  would  not  need  any 
more.  Strings,  papers,  scraps  of  all  kinds, 
even  bits  of  food.  I  was  so  thankful  that 
she  had  been  so  happy  and  had  escaped  a 
second  agony,  the  brave  little  heart! 

The  clang  of  the  telephone-wire  early  the 
next  morning  announced  the  advent  of  the 
mate.  He  had  brought  the  usual  delicacy 
for  his  little  wife.  He  laid  it  on  the  win- 
dow-sill and  ate  his  portion  of  mocking-bird 
food,  evidently  not  disturbed  at  first  by  her 
non-appearance.  As  the  day  wore  on,  how- 
ever, he  showed  much  uneasiness.  The  fol- 
lowing morning  he  came  once — the  mock- 
ing-bird food  alone  did  not  allure  him — 
and  after  that  I  heard  his  voice  from  the 
treetops  only.  The  neighbors  told  me  that 
he  lingered  around  the  house  for  a  day  or 
so  after  my  departure,  and  he  probably 
249 


MR.   CHUPES   AND    MISS   JENNY 

joined  the  robin  throng  when  convinced 
that  Jenny  would  not  return. 

Perhaps,  at  times,  impelled  by  some 
vague  remembrance  of  his  strange  little 
companion  of  a  month,  he  visited  the  old 
haunts,  and  his  voice  may  have  blended 
with  the  sweet  lullaby  that  the  rustling 
leaves  and  murmuring  waters  sing  all  sum- 
mer long  at  the  grave  of  my  dear,  never- 
to-be-forgotten  little  friends — Mr.  Chupes 
and  Miss  Jenny. 

250 


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nomenclature  and  technical  terms,  and 
who  yet  love  to  observe  the  beauties 
and  the  wonders  of  familiar  plant-life. 

"  Of  the  many  out-of-doors  books  that 
have  appeared  upon  the  market  during 
the  past  few  years,  this  is  certainly  en- 
titled to  a  foremost  rank.  For  the  busy 
reader  who  seeks  a  practical  rather  than 
a  technical  knowledge  of  our  common 
flowers  and  grasses,  it  is  by  far  the  best 
work  that  has  yet  come  to  our  attention.  Such  a  book  as  this 
fills  a  positive  *  want.'  " — Kennebec  Journal. 

"  The  illustrations,  both  from  photographs  and  drawings, 
and  the  charming  binding,  make  the  book  as  artistically  per- 
fect as  it  is  in  a  literary  way.  No  flower  lover  can,  I  believe, 
afford  to  be  without  'Field,  Forest,  and  Wayside  Flowers/" — 
Syracuse  Journal. 

"We  can  thank  Providence  that  at  last  there  has  been 
acknowledged  the  division  between  botany  and  just  common 
knowledge  about  the  green  and  tinted  things  which  God  has 
given  us." — New  York  Press. 

THE    BAKER   &   TAYLOR   CO.,    PUBLISHERS, 
33-37  E.  i?th  St.,  Union  Sq.  North,  New  York. 


FIELDS 
FORESTS 
WAYSIDE- 
BLOWERS 


BAKER  &  TAYLOR  CO: 8  PUBLICATIONS. 


WITH  THE  WILD  FLOWERS.  From  Pussy-willow 
to  Thistle-down.  A  rural  chronicle  of  our  flower 
friends  and  foes,  describing  them  under  their  familiar 
English  names.  New  and  revised  edition.  By  MAUD 
GOING.  16mo,  cloth,  fully  illustrated,  $1.00. 


WITH  THE 
WILD  FLOWERS 


'BY  MAUD  GOING 


CONTENTS. 

The  Plant  World.  Twilight  and  June  in  a 
Flowers  and  their  Visitors.      Garden. 

Buds.  Water-side  and  Pond 

Hidden  Treasuries.  Flowers. 

Willow-pussies   and   Al-  Unbidden  Guests. 

der-tassels.  Winged  Burglars. 

A  Wreath  for  the  May-  Ogre-flowers. 

queen.  Orchids. 

The  Calla's  Poor  Rela-  Among  the  Late  Wild 

tions.  Flowers. 

Cherry-bloom   and   Cot-  The    Happy    Autumn 

tonwood.  Fields. 

Spring's   Younger  Chil-  Seeds  on  their  Travels. 

dren.  Foes     Afield  —  Plants 

Field-daisies.  Poisonous      to     the 
Touch. 

A  delightful  volume  giving  flower  facts,  rather  than  mere 
names  and  classifications.  It  is  written  by  a  true  lover  of 
nature,  who  adds  to  exceptional  literary  feeling  the  rare  gift 
of  making  instruction  thoroughly  enjoyable  by  a  style  at  once 
clear,  entertaining  and  imaginative.  The  book  carries  us 
through  the  whole  season  with  the  flowers  as  they  make  their 
appearance.  It  is  accurate  in  its  illustrations  and  text  to  the 
point  of  scientific  precision,  and  its  style  and  method  (which 
discriminate  it  widely  from  the  ordinary  "  botany  ")  enhance, 
through  their  intrinsic  attractiveness,  its  power  to  instruct. 

"  A  valuable  and  interesting  little  work.  Much  quaint 
and  out-of-the-way  knowledge  is  gathered  into  its  pages  and 
communicated  with  friendly  simplicity.  Odd  facts  in  the 
history  of  plants  are  explained  in  such  a  winsome  way  that  it 
is  not  until  the  reader  closes  the  book  that  he  realizes  how 
much  scientific  information  has  been  administered  to  him. 
Many  reminders  of  field  and  forest  may  be  found  in  this 
delightful  little  volume." — New  York  Tribune. 

THE   BAKER  AND  TAYLOR  COMPANY,   PUBLISHERS, 
33-37  E.  17TH  ST.,  UNION  SQUARE  NORTH,  NEW  YORK. 


BAKER  &  TAYLOR  CO: 8  PUBLICATIONS. 

MR.  CHUPES  AND  MISS  JENNY  :  THE  LIFE  STORY 
OF  TWO  ROBINS.  By  EFFIE  BIGNELL.  12mo, 
cloth,  $1.00. 

A  charming  account  of  the  life  in  captivity  of  two  birds 
whose  misfortunes  made  them  at  first  the  involuntary  com- 
panions of  humankind,  and  whose  affection  for  their  gentle 
guardian  made  them  unwilling  afterwards  to  leave  her  for  a 
life  of  liberty  with  their  own  kind.  All  friends  of  the  birds 
will  detect  in  the  writer  of  this  sympathetic  story  a  true 
lover  of  birds,  not  only  from  her  perception  of  the  most  inter- 
esting of  her  pets'  experiences,  but  also  from  her  general 
attitude  toward  feathered  life.  The  Audubon  Society  is  sure 
to  approve  of  her  because,  like  its  members,  she  reverses  the 
old  saying  and  really  believes  that  two  birds  in  the  hand  are 
worth  nowhere  near  so  much  as  one  in  the  bush. 

FIRST  YEARS  IN  HANDICRAFT.    By  WALTER  J. 

KENYON,  State  Normal  School,  San  Francisco,  Cal. 

Square  12mo,  fully  illustrated,  $1.00. 

This  is  a  handbook  of  handicraft  rather  than  "  sloyd  "  or 
manual  training,  and  is  intended  to  show  little  folks  how  to 
make  useful  things  with  the  ruler,  pencil  and  scissors.  It  is 
meant  for  children,  either  at  home  or  at  school,  of  from  seven 
to  eleven  or  twelve  years  of  age — children  who  have  out- 
grown the  employments  of  the  kindergarten  and  have  yet  to 
attain  the  growth  qualifying  them  for  the  forms  of  handi- 
craft common  in  the  grammar  grades.  The  materials  used 
are  simple  and  cheap,  but  tough  as  leather  and  beautiful  in 
color  and  texture.  The  "  models  "  are  really  elementary  and 
are  things  little  folks  can  make,  and  all  of  them  are  real 
intrinsic  things  which  can  be  used  at  home  or  in  school. 
Many  years  of  intimate  acquaintance  with  children,  their 
ways  and  their  capabilities,  have  fitted  the  author  for  ac- 
complishing his  task  with  discretion  and  efficiency. 

THE  BAKER  AND  TAYLOR  COMPANY,  PUBLISHERS, 
33-37  E.  17TH  ST.,  UNION  SQUAKE  NORTH,  NEW  YORK. 


Amateur   Photography 

A  Practical  Guide  for  the  Beginner 

By  W.   I.   LINCOLN   ADAMS 

Editor    of    "The     Photographic    Times,"    "The 
American  Annual  of  Photography,"  "  The 
Photographic   Instructor," 
etc.,  etc. 

Revised    and    enlarged    edition.       Illustrated 
with  many  half-tones  and  line  engravings. 


The  Standard 
Handbook 
and  Guide 
for  the 
Amateur 
Photographer 


Chapters  on  Apparatus,  the  Dark-room,  Print- 
ing and  Toning,  Instantaneous  Photography, 
Flash-light,  Composite  Photography,  Portraiture, 
etc.,  etc. 

I2mo.     Cloth,  $1.25.     Paper,  75  cents. 


To  be  had  of  all  Booksellers,  or  will  be  sent,  post-paid,  on 
receipt  of  price  by 

THE    BAKER   &   TAYLOR   COMPANY 
33-87  E.  I?TH  ST.,  UNION  SQUARE  NORTH, 

NEW   YORK 


Reviews  of  "Amateur  Photography" 

"  Both  by  text  and  illustration  the  volume  is  a 
thorough  instructor  in  photography." — Inter- 
Ocean,  Chicago. 

"  Guide-books  to  photography  have  been  writ* 
ten,  but  a  great  majority  of  them  are  of  little  use 
to  the  beginner,  because  their  advice  is  beyond 
his  understanding.  W.  I.  Lincoln  Adams  is  a 
teacher  of  the  art  who  has  the  happy  faculty  of 
speaking  through  the  written  page  as  clearly  as 
he  might  if  he  were  face  to  face  with  the  beginner. 
Every  branch  of  the  work  is  covered." — State 
Gazette,  Trenton. 

"  The  best  guide  that  has  ever  come  to  our  atten- 
tion. A  model  of  the  publisher's  art." — Journal, 
Augusta,  Me. 

"  We  can  conceive  of  no  more  appropriate  gift 
for  holiday  time  than  this  beautiful  book." — Cen- 
tral Christian  Advocate. 

"  The  book  is  reliable  as  a  guide." — New  York 
Tribune. 

"A  useful,  practical  guide  for  beginners." — 
Outing. 

"A  most  valuable  hand-book  for  amateurs." — 
Boston  Traveller. 

"The  work  is  practical  and  helpful." — The  In- 
terior',  Chicago. 

"  A  practical  guide  for  the  beginner." — Cleve- 
land Plaindealer. 

41  Full  of  clear  and  practical  instructions." — New 
York  Observer. 

"A  valuable  little  text-book  for  amateurs." — 
Boston  Transcript. 

*-^ 

THE    BAKER   &   TAYLOR    COMPANY 

Publishers 
33-37   EAST    SEVENTEENTH    STREET,  NEW    YORK 


BAKER  <fc  TAYLOR  CO.' 8  PUBLICATIONS. 

THE  SALT-BOX  HOUSE  :  EIGHTEENTH  CEN- 
TURY LIFE  IN  A  NEW  ENGLAND  HILL  TOWN. 
By  JANE  DE  FOREST  SHELTON.  12mo,  cloth, 
decorated,  $1.25. 

"  A  picture  of  New  England  country  life  in  the  last  cen- 
tury, full  of  reality  and  feeling,  and  which  it  is  both  interest- 
ing and  pleasing  to  look  upon.  The  book  is  delightfully 
written,  and  its  romance  and  tenderness,  no  less  than  the 
truthfulness  and  lifelikeness  of  its  restoration  of  the  old 
domestic  and  social  interior,  will  appeal  strongly  to  many 
a  heart." — Boston  Literary  World. 

"  Deserves  more  than  cursory  mention.  The  style  and 
manner  of  the  work  are  quiet  and  peaceful,  and  the  matter 
of  the  narrative  is  touched  with  an  almost  breathless  rev- 
erence. So  simple  is  the  commentary,  so  sweet  and  gentle 
its  slightest  utterance,  that  at  times  it  reaches  the  highest 
art  of  expression." — New  York  Public  Opinion. 

"  It  would  be  a  pity  if  students  and  lovers  of  old  and 
quaint  New  England  customs  should  miss  reading  'The 
Salt-Box  House,'  which  gives  a  delightfully  vivid  and  sym- 
pathetic picture  of  life  in  a  Connecticut  hill-town  in  the 
eighteenth  century." — Living  Age. 

"A  book  of  more  than  ordinary  carefulness  and  search 
for  detail;  the  style  is  pretty  and  also  picturesque;  the 
method  of  its  construction  is  good;  the  general  reader  will 
find  pleasure  and  profit  from  its  perusal." — Springfield  Re- 
publican. 

"Is  full  of  atmosphere  and  reality,  and  enlightened  with 
many  graceful  and  humorous  touches." — Public  Ledger. 

"  An  entertaining  as  well  as  faithful  picture  of  eighteenth 
century  life,  and  we  heartily  commend  it." — Boston 
Transcript. 

"The  reader  will  turn  every  page  with  interest.  The 
book  is  an  ideal  one  for  reading  aloud."— The  Presbyterian. 

"The  reading  of  this  book  is  a  pure  delight." — Church 
Standard. 

Sent,  postpaid,  on  receipt  of  the  price,  by 

THE  BAKER  AND  TAYLOR  COMPANY,  PUBLISHERS, 
33-37  E.  I?TH  ST.,  UNION  SQUARE  NORTH,  NEW  YORK. 


This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


JU 


N/:          J 

iBYZi 


1966 


66BJ 


General  Library 
Univers^Califoraia 


